Her bright green eyes were alight as they held on to mine. There was no fear. Only a heavy lust that pleaded for satisfaction. She was beautiful, and that look made her even more so.

I knew I couldn’t, I shouldn’t. My mind screamed at me to focus, to stay in control, but the rest of my body howled to take her. Her shallow breaths moistened my lips as she gasped for me, reaching for the kiss I denied her. My mouth ached to meet hers. It took every shred of self-control to hold back, and that was hanging by a thread.

Then, she moaned. A soft, rumbling sound that travelled from her throat, through my fingers and down my chest. It echoed there like it had penetrated me, stirring the longing I was trying so hard to fight. She snapped my thread.

There was no relief when my lips met hers. She kissed me with a hunger that matched my own, and just tasting her raised my need to a whole other level. The more I had, the more I wanted. Everything about her crazed me. Her smell, her taste, the feel of her, but especially the sounds she made.

Fuck. Those sounds.

Catching her lip in my teeth, I bit down. Her shriek peaked high before dropping low as she rumbled with pleasure. It sent blood coursing through my already painfully hard cock. As much as I wanted to take her right then and there, those sounds were begging for release first.

I traced the soft outline of her pert breasts. They were firm and delicate all at the same time. The skin, warm and supple, demanded to be squeezed. They felt like puddles of silk between my fingers, becoming firmer as I squeezed harder. When I did, her soft purrs rose through the spectrum until they growled and cried. I pinched her nipples under my nails, and her shriek made my head light. She was too much. I wanted her too much.

Reaching around her back, I pulled her hair and exposed the tender skin on her neck. Her body arched into mine. Hanging by her wrists, her slim frame created the most amazing curve. My fingers clawed the slender shape of her back as my kiss traced her jaw. Small nips drew playful squeaks from her lips. They were delightful.

As I nuzzled into her neck, her scent became intoxicating. The smell of honey on her hair, rich and sweet, provided the top notes, but the scent of her skin, warm and earthy, gave the delectable base notes. I couldn’t get enough. Taking a deep breath, I lost myself in her sweetness before I sunk my teeth hard into her neck. Her pained cry, high and growling, rippled through my body as she trembled. It turned the longing in my guts into something desperate.

I wanted more of her, all of her. I wanted to explore her inside and out. To taste every last inch of her body. She was an addiction, and I had no intention of doing anything other than feeding my habit. I couldn’t give her up, not now.

Kissing her neck and over her collarbone, I bit my way to her beautiful breasts until my lips found her nipple. It stood proud asking to be played with and grew harder when my tongue danced around its rubbery surface. I pulled her tighter and engulfed the soft nub in an eager kiss. Her deep, rolling moans told me what it did for her. It was all I could do to press my teeth against the sensitive little pebble. Her shriek cut through the room. She was the perfect instrument. When I played her, she created sounds that stirred the depths of my soul.

I ached to hear more. I needed to hear the full majesty of her song. To turn those sounds into a symphony.

My fingers admired her slender waist as I found my way across her toned stomach, and down to the glorious patch between her legs. The soft tuft of hair tickled my palm as I slid a finger into the slickness of her folds. She gasped then rumbled with pleasure. A deep, dark moan that vibrated from the depths of her.

She was so wet, so goddamn wet that my finger glided over the silkiness of her labia. She felt so good, I could have played with her all night.

I kissed her as my fingers teased in the wetness, tasting the gentle purr that rolled from her tongue. Relishing the dips and troughs of sounds when I caressed her sensitive clit. I found her entrance and slipped inside. She welcomed me, pulled me in to her tight opening and clenched her muscles around my finger. Her mouth gaped as she groaned with what sounded like relief. I stole the moan from her lips, drawing it deep into my lungs, and letting it roll through my chest. It provoked the desperate longing that pulled from my groin.

Feeling her move around my finger was a pleasure all in itself. She throbbed and tightened as I pressed into the velvety smoothness of her walls; pulsing against me as I worked music from her lips. Her pussy was divine, like a satin sheath which sucked me deeper and begged to be filled. I had no choice but to oblige. Squeezing another finger passed her tight rim, I plunged as far as I could go, and watched her smouldering eyes widen as her mouth gaped in a long, growling cry.

She was exquisite. As beautiful as she was, nothing compared to the radiance of her face as it twisted in pleasure, and pain.

Her heavy eyes found mine and pleaded with me for more. As I pressed hard against her wall, her pussy replied with eager pulsations. She was close. Trust her to want to come so soon, I’d barely had the chance to work her into a frenzy.

Circling my fingers, I kneaded at her soft throbbing flesh and forced excited yelps from her throat. Loud, quick and gasping, they matched my rhythm; increasing in both pitch and volume when I pushed her harder.

Then, she blew my mind.

Lifting her legs from the floor, she raised her knees to her chest. She opened wide and invited me to push further. It was so fucking hot, I almost melted.

I kissed her with all the hunger she caused in me as I drove my fingers fast and deep, plundering her soaking depths until her gravelly moans became wails. She was dancing on the edge. Her pussy quaked, her head rolled back, and just as her ragged breaths reached fever pitch, I pulled out.

Her pained cry growled with frustration as her body trembled for release. I grasped her face and smiled at the anguish written across her furrowed brow, and the seething irritation in her eyes.

“I didn’t say you could come.”

Unable to articulate her annoyance, she whined at me. A long, desperate, high pitched whine that graduated through her spectrum of sounds, and ended in a low, deep roar. She was so much fun to tease. I slapped her face and brought her attention back.

“Whining girls don’t get what they want.”

She drew a long breath and sighed, trying to hide her smile. “What do they get?”

My smile grew as I leant into her face. “Punished.”

Her eyes glinted with mischief. “What do good girls get?”

I held her eyes and unbuttoned my shirt. “Fucked.”

She could no longer hide the smile that curled on her lips. It grew as wide as her cheeks, and her eyes sparkled with that knowing glint. The one I first saw the day I met her. She knew this would happen as much as I did.

We denied it to ourselves, but the moment we locked eyes we knew we wanted each other. There was a pull between us that was electric, magnetic. One so strong we would never win the fight against it. A longing that could only be satisfied with each other. There was no more fight from me. I was going to take what was mine.

Dropping the shirt from my shoulders, I pulled her into my arms and matched her impatient kiss. She was hungry for me. Her pussy was wet and warm against my stomach as she clasped her legs around my back and writhed. Her body was frenzied, grinding against me to get herself off. I held on to her firm arse cheeks as she did. Her skin still blistering hot from the whipping she’d received.

I reached round and unzipped my fly, pulling out my raging hard-on. She made me so hot and so hard, it was painful. As she wriggled above me, my cock rubbed between her arse cheeks, sending another surge of blood into my dick. It was intense, but not as intense as it would get.

Her ankles locked as I positioned at her entrance and pressed into the sweet, wet folds. It felt so good. She opened to take me. Her slickness drawing me inside. I pushed, and she encased me in her soft wetness. I reeled from the overwhelming rush of pleasure.

Her eyes widened and her mouth gaped as she let out a deep, growling moan that rumbled through her body and into mine. As I pressed to her depths, I had to hold as the rush coursed through my body. It was overpowering. I kissed her as the feeling subsided, then pulled back to thrust again. Her slickness clasped and squeezed with a vice grip. Pulling me deeper and sending waves of heat that pitted my stomach as I pushed to her limit.

She fit me perfectly, like she was made just for me. She hugged my length and dared me to push harder. I buried my face into her neck and basked in her sweet scent before biting her skin. Her cry made me shudder. Her heartbeat pounded heavy beneath me as her body squirmed to fit mine, and she raised her hips to take me deeper.

The invitation didn’t go unheeded. It spurred me to grip her tight and fuck her hard. Her face contorted with every thrust. I watched as her smouldering eyes squeezed shut. Her elegant nose creased, and her lips curled back from her a wide-mouthed cries. Every thrust had her twisting and pulling against me. Her head dropped back as she moaned louder still. The sound of her increasing cries only fuelled my drive.

The blood surged, making me harder, sending pangs of pleasure that threatened to take me over the edge. I couldn’t come, not yet, but she felt so damn good it wouldn’t be long.

I kissed her lips as her mouth remained wide with her cries. She was lost in me. Lost in the pleasure that took over her body. Her pussy throbbed and squeezed tight.

“Come. Come for me.”

Biting her lip, I fucked her hard. Her breath quickened, and her eyes closed as her body tightened. She arched back, her chest pressing into mine. Her head fell back as I released my bite. A primal cry erupted, and her body spasmed with her orgasm.

The throbbing around my cock pushed a wave of heat that pulled from the inside out. I couldn’t hold on. She’d taken me with her. My body shook as I gripped her tight, holding on to her as if I could hold on to the feeling. The euphoria surged in waves as I came. Hard.

An all-consuming surge of ecstasy flooded through every cell, and I groaned long and loud with the release.

It subsided and left me with a sense of completeness I hadn’t felt before. One that was there because I had her in my arms. I kissed her as I caught my breath. The sensitivity was almost unbearable. Her lips were electricity on mine. Her body trembled under me and jerked with the slightest of movements. I wanted to stay there forever, holding her close, indulging in the sweet pleasures of her amazing body.

I lifted my head to see her beautiful face. She was glowing. A soft smile curled her lips, and a satisfied serenity had replaced the torment which lived behind her eyes. It was a calmness I hadn’t expected.

Reaching up, I stroked her soft cheek. It was clammy from her exertions. Her body relaxed as she sighed. The warmth in her eyes grew as she brushed her cheek against my fingers and stared back.

Her gaze tugged at the knot in my chest. The one that had tied the first time I laid eyes on her and had tightened with every look since. I was bound to her. It didn’t matter how much I denied it, or tried to fight it. There was a chemistry between us that would forever draw us together.

She was perfect. Everything I wanted was wrapped up in this glorious woman. It was like she was meant to be mine. It wasn’t just her stunning looks or her fine body, but everything that made her who she was.

The wondrous sounds that made me melt and the way she asked and endured the pain I inflicted. I’d never known a woman who could take the pain like it, or enjoy it quite so much either. Even her rebellious nature, the demanding streak that frustrated the hell out of me. I loved that about her. She was perfect for me. I was hers, and she was mine.

A sickening thought burst my happy little bubble. She’d be taken from me soon. Marcus was already making the arrangements to move her. If I didn’t let her go, he’d make sure she was taken for good. There was no way I’d let that happen. I’d fucked things up. I should’ve stayed away, because now there was no way I’d let her go.

“You look so serious.” Her soft voice cracked as she whispered.

I smiled and leant to kiss her. The tender sensations brought me from my thoughts as they tickled down my chest. Her tongue danced delicately between my lips before I pulled away.

I sighed. “Only serious about you.”

She laughed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“This shouldn’t have happened. Now, I want you more than I ever did.”

“Is that a problem?”

“Yeah. It’s made things complicated. I shouldn’t have got involved.”

The smile dropped from her face, but the warmth remained. “I wanted you to.” She leant to kiss me again and my hand traced her jaw before she pulled away and studied my face. “I knew what I was getting into… sort of.”

“Glad you did. I’m still blindsided by you.” She laughed as I stroked her hair. “I think I always will be.”

She looked up at me with a soft smile that stirred my heart. It wasn’t a feeling I was used to. I had to glance away. “Come on, we need to see to those welts.”

I let her go, unravelled her legs from my back and fastened my belt. She lowered to her toes and stretched out her joints. Being tied the ceiling had given her a workout, I knew she’d be aching. Reaching up, I unfastened the cuffs and lowered her down. Her wrists were red raw as she circled them to ease the pain. I lifted her into my arms as she gave out a playful squeak.

She held onto my neck as I carried her from the room. The hallway was bright as I stepped through and took her upstairs to the bathroom. I placed her on the floor before fitting the bath plug and turning the hot tap. Her arms wrapped around her shoulders as I knelt back in front of her. “We’ll have you warmed up in no time.”

She hugged into my chest as I stroked her arms and buried my face into her hair. I knew she’d be feeling vulnerable, I didn’t expect that I would be, too.

Lost but complete, and I didn’t know how to deal with it. All I wanted to do was hold and protect her, but that left me questioning everything.

Who I was, what I did, and more importantly, what I was going to do.

There’s no way I’d let her be sold, I wouldn’t let anyone come near her again. Especially not Marcus, but I didn’t know what I’d have to do to protect her from him.

I grasped her head close and checked the water with my free hand before turning off the tap. She looked up at me as I knelt back and I couldn’t help but stroke her face. “It’s hot.”

“Good. The hotter, the better.”

“It’s gonna hurt.”

She grinned. “You think I can’t take it?”

“I know you can. Fair warning, is all.” Placing my arm under her legs and mindful of her back, I lifted her up to place her in the bath.

“You don’t have to pick me up, y’know?”

“Yeah, I kinda do. It’s only polite.”

She laughed as I lowered her in feet first. The moment the water hit the welts, she yelped with the pain. I released her legs and held her face as she grimaced.

“Lean back, it’ll take out the sting.”

She closed her eyes and sank into the water. Her face squeezed together as she winced and whined. “It still hurts.”

“Give it a minute.”

She soaked for a moment and sighed. Before she turned towards me with a smile that belied the questioning in her eyes. “I suppose you’ve had to learn these tricks through your trade?”

I dropped her gaze. Never had I felt shame or guilt from what I did. She made me question it though. “Not before I’d been through it.”

“Really?”

I turned and showed her the deep scars crossing the length of my back. “You’re not the only one to take a beating.”

“Who? When?”

I shook my head and made my way over to the medicine cabinet by the sink. Taking out the antiseptic and cotton wool, I walked back over and knelt by the bath. She was still looking at me expectantly. “If you thought the water stung, just wait till you feel this.”

“You don’t want to tell me?”

I sighed. “It’s not something I talk about.”

She turned back in the water and stared at the ceiling. She was disappointed. The tension had changed between us. Had I managed to ruin whatever we had going so soon? “I need you to sit up and turn around.”

She sat up and studied me with a glint in her eyes. “Get in.”

“What?”

“Get in.”

“Demanding as ever.”

“Just get in.”

“Why?”

“Why not?”

I laughed. “You’re serious?”

She stared at me with a dead pan expression. “Do I look like I’m taking the piss?”

I stared back, then gave in and shrugged my shoulders. “Okay.”

Kicking off my boots, I unfastened my belt. A smile curled on her lips as I removed my jeans. “You’re gonna sit there and watch?”

“Nothing I haven’t seen already.”

She shuffled forward as I stepped over the side and slid behind her. The moment she relaxed into me, all the tension lifted and I was once again brought under her spell. Intoxicated with her presence as I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her neck. I loved being close.

She brushed her face against mine and sighed. “Tell me about your past.”

I bit her earlobe and whispered. “Olivia, don’t.”

“Please. I need to know.”

She was cunning, I’d give her that. Getting me close so I wouldn’t shut the topic. She’d already worked out how she could take down my defences.

Talking about anything personal didn’t come naturally. As much as it made me uncomfortable, if she needed to know, then so be it.

“You were right.” I closed my eyes and battled against the rising ache in my chest. “The photo in the bedroom is of my mother.” Olivia raised her hands to mine and squeezed with reassurance. “She was one of four women owned by my father.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. My mother loved her life as did the others. My father used to be fair despite his strict discipline. For most of my childhood, it was a loving if unconventional family.”

“What went wrong?”

I buried my face into her neck and prepared myself to say it out loud. I’d told no one before, even Marcus only knew small parts about my life. “My mother was the matriarch and kept everyone in line, my father included. He loved her dearly and although he’d never admit it, she was the one who controlled the house.” I smiled as I remembered her, but it faded. “I was twelve when she died, a stroke took her without warning. After that, everything changed.”

“Your father was heartbroken?”

“He couldn’t deal with her loss. The drinking turned his temperament from strict to brutal, he’d beat us without cause. The next three years descended into hell, but it was my responsibility to protect my family. So when my father lost control, I’d step in and distract his rage, taking the beatings for all of them.”

“That’s where the scars came from?”

“I was the eldest of the boys, it was my burden. But one night when I was fifteen, my brother wound my father past the point of reason. I tried my best to distract him. To take my brother’s punishment, but my father wouldn’t quit. There was no choice but to fight. He came after me with the fire iron and something snapped. When I snatched it from his grip, I lost control and beat him so hard I thought I’d killed him.”

She turned onto her knees to face me. “But you didn’t.”

I looked away. “No. He ended up in hospital, but he was fine. After that, he kicked me out of the house, and I haven’t seen any of them since.”

“I understand. I know what it’s like to have a monster for a father.”

“No. My father wasn’t a monster, he loved us. He was just… in pain. I swore I’d never lose control again. That I’d never put myself in a position to end up losing someone like my father did.”

Her hands came to my face. She kissed me, and the loving tenderness eased the pain of the memories, but stirred the apprehension. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close, trying to dismiss the worry that my feelings for her brought. Instead, I focused on the feelings themselves.

I wanted her regardless of what happened. I’d spent my life trying not to get attached to anyone. Keeping distant, staying in control. Then along came Olivia and shattered that intention. I didn’t want to get close, but now I was, there was no way I could let her go.