Page 84 of Ruthless Mercy


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A room built for this. For us.

Dim light spilled out over polished wood floors and exposed brick. In the centre, a heavy chair waited—black leather, bolted to the floor, fitted with steel rings and cuffs. The air inside was cooler, tinged with leather and anticipation.

Cal was in complete shock and awe.

I nodded toward the room. “Go sit.”

He moved without hesitation, never breaking eye contact. I followed him in, closing the door behind us. He took the chair with the same grace he brought to everything—confident, unafraid, always up for a challenge.

I took my time, circling him, letting my hands trail across his bare shoulders, down his arms. “Hands on the armrests,” I said. “Let me see you.”

He complied, knuckles white on black leather, body stretched long and lean. The sight was obscene in the best way—power caged, waiting for release. I reached for the cuffs, strapping his wrists down with careful precision, checking each for fit and comfort. He watched me the entire time, eyes bright, daring me to try and break him.

When his arms were secured, I knelt to fasten the cuffs around his ankles, spreading his legs just enough that he was exposed, but not vulnerable. Vulnerability was a privilege—one he chose to give, not one I’d take without permission.

I stood, brushing my hand up his thigh, letting my palm linger just below the edge of his briefs. “Colour?”

“Green.” His voice was calm. Fierce. “You’ll have to do better than this if you want me begging.”

My mouth curved in a slow, wicked smile. “Don’t worry. I intend to take my time.”

I bent, lips ghosting over the inside of his thigh, teeth scraping lightly, just enough to leave a promise of pain if I wanted it. My hands wandered—fingertips trailing up his stomach, circling his nipples, pinching and twisting until he hissed through his teeth. I watched every micro-expression, every flinch and flex, cataloguing his responses like a map to all his secret wants.

“Tell me if anything changes,” I said softly. “If you want me to stop?—”

“I’ll tell you.” His voice was ragged, half-defiance, half-need. “But I won’t.”

“We’ll see.” I moved behind him, hands sliding up the back of the chair, fingers threading into his hair, tilting his head so I could kiss the side of his neck—soft, then biting, sucking hard enough to mark. He shuddered, not from fear, but from the thrill of losing just enough control to let me have my way with him.

I drew it out—teasing, denying, every touch calculated to build pressure instead of release. My hands moved over his chest, down his arms, across his thighs, never quite touching where he wanted me most. When he arched into my palm, I pulled away, letting him feel the absence as sharply as the contact.

“You’re insatiable,” he said, voice cracking on the word.

“So are you.” I kissed him, slow and deep, then straightened, surveying him like the work of art he was. “And I’m going to enjoy every second it takes to make you admit how much you need this.”

I crossed to the side table, where the implements waited—selecting a single cube of ice from the glass. I held it up, letting him see the frost glint in the low light before I brought it to his chest.

The first touch drew a full-body shiver. I circled his left nipple with the ice, watching it pebble and tighten under the cold, then trailed the melting cube slowly across to the other side. Cal’s breath stuttered. He tried to keep still, tried to stay stoic, but the sensation made his hips shift, legs straining at the restraints.

“Still think you’re in control?” I murmured, running the ice in lazy, melting lines over his skin—across his chest, down the centre of his abs, tracing every dip and ridge. Droplets gathered and ran in rivulets, catching the firelight. I paused at his right nipple, holding the cube in place until his entire body arched into the chair, as if the heat of his skin could burn through the cold if he just pressed hard enough.

His jaw was clenched, breaths coming quick and ragged. “F-fuck you.”

I only smiled, bringing the cube up to his lips. “Open,” I ordered, my voice low and uncompromising.

He hesitated for a single heartbeat then obeyed, lips parting. I pressed the melting ice between his teeth, watched his mouth close around it, eyes locked on mine. I could see the flush spreading down his chest, could feel the anticipation radiating off him.

“Don’t swallow yet.” I leaned in, mouth just against his ear, letting my words vibrate through him. My hands kept working—palming the next cube, tracing it down his torso, circling his navel, pressing it between his thighs without ever touching where he ached for it most.

His hips jerked, muscles flexing, cock straining under the thin fabric of his briefs. I dragged the ice along the waistband, then lower, letting the cold soak through the cotton. He writhed, trying to get closer, to chase the sensation and escape it all at once.

I drew back just enough to watch him—shivering, breathing hard, eyes wild. “Swallow.”

He did, throat working around the last fragment of ice. When I offered my thumb, slick with condensation, he sucked it into his mouth without hesitation, tongue swirling, gaze never leaving mine.

I rewarded him with another cube, pressing it flat to his left nipple, holding it there until he was moaning softly—each sound more desperate than the last.

“That’s it,” I coaxed, voice gone rough with arousal.