Nine
Two weeks. I’ve gone two weeks without being summoned by Master Kade. I spend most of my day in my room, waiting around just in case he calls me. He hasn’t yet. By lunch time, I step out into the garden just to touch things. I like the feel of the dirt between my toes and the smell of the leaves. I can’t describe the scent that emanates from a torn leaf…it smells green—no—earthy. Earthy is a much better word. And the flowers, the flowers smell amazing, like nothing I’ve ever smelt before. We hardly saw flowers in the Unfortunate camp…we hardly saw anything except mud and dirt. I push my tongue against the roof of my mouth. I can still taste the mud in the back of my throat.
“Hey you!”
I startle, yanking a handful of grass from the ground. I didn’t realise I’d sat on the ground to feel the grass. A female Unfortunate jogs over to me. Her frizzy hair bounces around her shoulders and the sun gleams against her gorgeous, dark skin. I quickly pull myself to my feet and drop the handful of grass. I’m careful not to get any dirt on my purple dress.
“Nine, right?”
I recognise her from the branding ceremony. She poured Kade’s drink while I got towels to clean up the alcohol she spilt. I don’t remember telling her my name, but we work in the same house, so I guess it wouldn’t be too hard to figure it out.
I nod. “Yeah.”
She smiles, exposing a set of perfect white teeth. She seems so upbeat and happy…why can’t I be upbeat and happy? Will I be, eventually?
“I’m Portia.”
I frown. Portia? I was expecting a number or something a little more degrading.
“Portia?”
She hooks her arm around mine and pulls me along beside her. My heartbeat quickens and I peer over my shoulder. Are we allowed to walk around so casually? Touching and chatting like the Fortunates do?
“They replaced my number when I started here. Sometimes, they run out of numbers and give you a name instead so they can reuse the number in the system.”
“They have a system?”
“Absolutely.” She giggles. “They’re not total barbarians.”
Aren’t they? Why doesn’t she think so? Questions form in my head one after the other and as I open my mouth to voice them, I see Master Kade walk by.
“Look, there’s Master Kade. It’s his birthday today.”
I freeze and dive into a near bush so he doesn’t see me. As soon as I’m hidden and sticks jab into my body, I regret it. What the hell am I doing? There’s a stick poking right into my brand, thankfully, it’s almost healed, but that doesn’t make it hurt any less.
“Portia?” Master Kade demands, his voice getting too close for comfort.
Through the branches, I see Portia peer nervously at me. I shake my head, begging her not to tell him. She clears her throat. “Yes, Master Kade?”
He strolls up to her, his handsome face pinched into a frown. Cold sweat trickles down the back of my neck and bubbles over my top lip. I ignore the leaves tickling my nose and the stick prodding my ass.
“Make sure Nine gets her dress.”
She nods, dropping her head. “Yes, Master Kade.”
He walks off without another glance in her direction and when he disappears inside the house, I force myself from the bush. When I’m out, the cool air stings new scratches on my arms and legs.
“Are you insane?” Portia scolds me, her thin eyebrows furrowing. “If he saw you we both would’ve been done for.”
“He didn’t see me,” I say, running my hands over my dress and plucking off stray leaves. “Thank god.”
She folds her arms. “Why’d you hide?”
“Because I’m avoiding him. Obviously.”
She shakes her head. “You can’t avoid him, silly child. You are his. If he wants to find you, he will.”
If he wants to find you, he will. The words make me shudder. Avoiding Kade isn’t the only reason I hid from him. I hid because it’s his birthday and I don’t know what that entails, exactly. Will he want things from me? Am I expected to do things for him? To him? Do I say happy birthday?
Portia snatches my wrist. “You look like you’re going to be sick.” She giggles. “If you keep your head down and do as you’re told, you’ll be fine. Now come, I’ll show you your dress.”
∞
I peer out the window at the beautifully lit back yard. Tiny white lights shine from almost every inch of the back yard and stunning large, bowl-like lights hang from the canopy. I’ve never seen anything so mesmerising. I watch Fortunates mingle and dance—laugh and drink—and I envy them. They’re so carefree. No one expects anything from them. No one wants to hurt them…or humiliate them. All they have to do is exist. I turn from the window and back to the mirror. My short beige dress doesn’t conceal my nipples—even with the pretty, flowers shaped sequins on top. I have the feeling I’m meant to be on show. I’m Kade’s gift…and he wants me to dress like one. I touch my hair. Half of it is pinned back by a pretty hairclip. I’ve never had my hair clipped before nor have I worn such beautiful accessories. I stare at my face. I don’t look like myself. Portia insisted I wear makeup. She outlined my eyes with a black pencil and combed through my eyelashes with another black tool—for a whole hour she put things on my face to ensure that I looked like ‘the untouchable possession’ Kade wants me to be. Possession. It’s an ugly word.
I rake my eyes over my outfit again and a familiar pang of uncomfortable tightness strikes. I’m not wearing the dress. I grip the hem of the dress and pull it up over my head. I toss it on the bed and retrieve my purple one from its crumpled heap on the floor. I pull it on and instantly I can breathe better.
There’s a knock at the door and I freeze, watching the door handle. It turns slowly before opening and an unknown Unfortunate peers inside. She’s not happy like Portia, her eyes are wide, like she’s seen a ghost.
“Master Kade wants to see you.” Her eyes flick to the other dress on the bed. “If I were you, I’d take the dress, too.”
I nod and she leaves. I swallow hard and inhale. I hold it for a few seconds, until my lungs burn, before exhaling. Then, I grab the other dress and march to Master Kade’s room with my head held high.
∞ Kade ∞
He lets his stare roam her body. Shadows, cast from the fireplace, nestled in the hollows of her cheeks and under her breasts. She wasn’t wearing the dress he’d picked out solely for this occasion and solely for her. Kade had given her time to adjust and two weeks was plenty. He’d wasted enough time taking her thoughts and feelings into account. Now, he was ready to use what was his—and she was an idiot if she thought he didn’t see her dive into a bush earlier today just to avoid him. He saw it. He should’ve dragged her out by her hair and made an example out of her and Portia. Portia knew better than to lie to him. Granted, he never asked her a question, but he didn’t have to. She was guilty by omission.
It was clear from her shaking form that Nine was in no position to seduce anybody tonight. He was going to have to put off his plan until a later date. It didn’t really matter right now, it’ll all work out as long as she’s confident in sex by the time he needed her.
In the meantime, he’d keep her on her toes and make sure she’s doing everything an Unfortunate should. As for the mine situation, Kade decided to dispatch his own people at his own risk. The mines needed to be sorted out and fast, and he’d request assistance from another house when Nine was capable of compelling cocks and minds in favour of his house.
Kade stepped closer. The room was so quiet he could’ve sworn he heard Nine swallow.
“Is there a problem with your dress?” he asked before he tipped the last few drops of alcohol down his throat.
“Yes,” she simply said. She squared her shoulders and angled her head toward him. It was a brave act, but he knew that’s all it was—an act. “There seem to be a few layers of fabric missing.”
Kade couldn’t help himself. He chuckled, dropping his empty glass onto the rug at his feet. “I can assure you there’s no fabric missing. I want those perfect, pink nipples of yours exposed.”
It wasn’t for him. Having her dressed this way was part of his game. She was the juicy slab of meat he was going to dangle in front of lions. By making her alluring and telling them not to touch, he was certain she’d get snapped up by someone he could use.
“I don’t feel comfor—”
“Tell me,” Kade interrupted, closing the distance between them. “What part of your existence is meant to make you feel comfortable?”
Nine visibly flinched, dropping her gaze to the floor. Kade caught her chin and angled her face back toward his. Her skin was soft, even on the tips of his fingers.
“You have twenty seconds to put the dress on, or I’m taking you out there naked.”
He flicked his head toward his bathroom and lowered his hand from her face. Without a word, she dragged herself into the bathroom and shut the door. Kade exhaled and sauntered back to this desk. He retrieved a new, clean glass and filled it with his favourite whiskey. Quickly, his mind fell onto his birthday. Kade hated birthdays—his especially—for as long as he could remember. He felt they were a waste of time and money. Vince was different. Vince loved a good birthday party. He took any chance he could get to drink booze until he couldn’t walk and fuck girls who weren’t in any mind to decide if he was a good guy or a bad guy. Vince was a bad guy. Always was and always will be, and while Kade wouldn’t necessarily refer to himself as good, he knew he wasn’t as messed up as Vince. Vince enjoyed life as a Fortunate. He used it to his advantage whenever he could—humiliation, rape, assault—you name it, he did it. Kade enjoyed being a Fortunate, too, but he knew that although the Unfortunates were a lower class people, they were still people. Vince had lost his humanity a long time ago, when their mother was killed and could no longer guide him down the right path. He was too young to remember her lessons, but Kade remembered them well. Though society had groomed him into the cold man he now was, he was still his mother’s son deep down. He remembered every lesson and every point she ever made.
Kade filled a new glass and dropped into his chair. He pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping it’d relieve his throbbing headache. No such luck. He tapped his fingers against the top of his table, waiting for Nine. He knew if he wasn’t there to force her to get dressed, she’d go to the party in the purple one she arrived in and Kade couldn’t have that.
Soon enough, Nine stepped out from the bathroom and Kade stopped tapping the desk. He took her in inch by inch—her long exposed legs, slim hips, and narrow waist before stopping at her breasts. Amongst the distraction of beige fabric and glistening sequins, he saw her nipples—barely—but they were still there. Finally, he pulled his sights to her face. She looked anything but happy. At first, her expression was pinched into a scowl, but when her violet eyes locked onto his, her scowl fell away, and was replaced by a shy, uncomfortable cringe.
“Perfect,” Kade said, shifting forward in his seat. “Was that so hard?”
She gritted her teeth and stared at Kade with eyes so intense it made his heart race. He couldn’t let her get away with defying him. It would catch on and other Unfortunates would know.
“You disobeyed me. What do I have to do to get it through to you that I own you? Do I have to punish you? Do I have to humiliate you?”
She shook her head, her eyes suddenly pleading. “No.”
“I think I do.”
He relaxed back into his chair. “Get down on your hands and knees.”
“But—”
He shook his head at her and she stopped speaking. This would be much easier if his father had picked a competent Unfortunate—one who didn’t question his every order. She exhaled and slumped as she lowered herself onto her hands and knees. She looked at the floor, not wanting to watch him and Kade didn’t mind. He didn’t need her unique violet eyes distracting him.
“Crawl to me.”
She snapped her head up and opened her mouth to protest.
“One fucking word and I’ll lift up that pretty little dress and slap your ass so fucking hard you won’t be able to sit for a week.”
He’d like to think that he wouldn’t slap her—he’d never wanted to spank a woman before…then again, he’d never seen a woman so flawless. She crawled toward him, and with every inch she moved, the more excited he got. Her auburn hair cascaded to the floor and circled her arms. Eventually, she sat at his feet and her eyes locked onto his. He watched her, trying to convince himself to commend her for coming that far and to let the girl go…but he couldn’t. Not when she was at his feet with her chest rising and falling as rapidly as it was. His stare was affecting her…he bet she wanted him to touch her.
“Closer,” he demanded, keeping the arousal he so strongly felt from his voice.
She inched closer until her body was pressed against his leg. She was warm, he could feel it radiating through the leg of his pants. Master Kade, (knowing better, but refusing to listen to the voice in his head) leaned forward and hooked a finger underneath her chin. She gasped at his touch and he almost let her go. Almost. He guided Nine to her feet, bringing her closer and closer until she was sitting on top of him. With his hands on her hips, Kade breathed heavily, ignoring the throb between his legs that told him he was harder than he’d ever been before and it was pressing right between Nine’s legs. He gripped her ass and rocked her against him, once. Deep in her throat, she made a sexy noise and her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. The sound penetrated Kade’s fabric, seeped through his skin, and ignited his blood. He fought a smile, not wanting to ruin the moment—she was unsure, but she was definitely enjoying every second of it.
Her face was barely an inch from his and he could feel her excited, yet terrified breath on his face. Desire hot enough to rival the sun flared deep in his veins and he dropped his stare from her eyes to her mouth. She had a sexy, sparse upper lip, but a plump lower one—it was as if someone had sucked too hard on her bottom lip, taking the blood from the top. Her lips were moist, just waiting to be kissed. As he stared, Kade wondered if she’d ever been kissed before. There was no doubt in his mind that she had to have been a popular one in the Unfortunate camp…surely someone had taken advantage of her alluring mouth. If not, he was about to. Kade ran his hands up Nine’s soft body and around her waist.
She held his arms, her eyes burning as bright as his undoubtedly were. He leaned in, and as their lips grazed, she whispered, “Please, don’t kiss me.”
Kade stopped in his tracks, pulling his face back. He had no idea why he stopped—she was his, after all, and he could do whatever he wanted to her and no one could stop him…he didn’t. Her once relaxed body tensed and her bottom lip trembled.
“I’m not…I can’t…I don’t…” She shook her head as an abrupt tear spilled over the rim of her left eye.
“I’ve been very lenient, Nine.” He pulled her forward until their foreheads touched. “I haven’t taken from you, I haven’t ordered you around, and I haven’t beaten you. I’m starting to think you believe I can be walked over.”
“No, not at all—”
“Do you think your pretty face is going to soften my hand?”
She shook her head.
“You want to know why I haven’t hurt you? You want to know why I’ve left you alone for weeks?” He didn’t wait for her response. “I don’t plan on using you for myself.”
Her face crumpled and it irritated him. Where was the girl that glared at him? The girl that would have spat in his face as the sentence left his lips? To say the vision of her broken on his lap didn’t arouse him was a lie. He wanted her under his thumb—to do exactly what she was born to do.
“You are going to save my house—boost me and my family name higher than my father ever has. I need you to be ready. I need you to be ready to kiss, suck, and fuck whoever I want you to, do you understand?”
Kade’s chest was tight—from arousal or anger, he had no idea. He was both pissed and wound up to the point of combustion and he needed a release. He needed it now.
“Off,” he ordered. She quickly slipped from him.
Nine took a slight step back and lowered her head. She wasn’t crying anymore. Her lips were parted, her eyebrows furrowed. Shock. She was in shock. Kade hated that he had to give someone as marvellous as Nine away to people who would only brutalize her perfect body, but it was the way of the new world. He had to push his mother’s advice to the side and do what society taught him to do—to rule.
“I’m going to teach you how to seduce a man. I’m going to teach you how to tease and please a man…and you’re going to use that knowledge to help me.”
His heart was racing and it rattled his ribcage as he fought hard to suppress his own excitement. Kade tugged at his belt and she took a defensive step back. Her eyes went round as fear spread across her face and froze her features.
“Get on your knees, Nine. This is lesson one.”
“You’re going to skip everything and go straight to that?” She spat ‘that’ like it was poison on her tongue.
He smiled. Brave, but stupid. “Now you want me to skip everything? Now you want me to seduce you, to kiss you and touch you?” He narrowed his eyes. “You didn’t want that a moment ago. Have you heard the term don’t push your luck?” He paused and she refused to look at him. “Drop to your knees.”
“And if I don’t?” she uttered, pinching the tip of one of her index fingers, nervously. “What will happen?”
Perhaps she wasn’t as smart as she looked.
“Get down and prepare yourself for lesson one or I’m going to call a handful of people into this room to watch you perform. They won’t take your disobedience as lightly as I have.”
Her violet eyes flicked anxiously around the room before her face fell. Defeated, she lowered herself to her knees, kneeling right between his legs. The warm soft sides of her body rested against the covered insides of his legs. Master Kade watched her as he dragged his zipper down. He kept his movements slow and soothing. This was her first time doing anything so erotic and he wouldn’t make it any harder than it had to be, and if truth be told, he didn’t want to scare her. Kade didn’t want it to be like this, but he’d teased himself and she had to learn anyway. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time and he figured there was no harm in teaching her while he appeased his sexual appetite at the same time. He pushed the zipper down the last section of teeth and opened his slacks. Nine kept her eyes on his pants, waiting for him to expose himself to her, and as he slipped his fingers underneath the fabric, her lips parted and she expelled a breath of air. He released his hard cock from his pants. Pre-cum coated the top and it glistened in the dim light of the crackling fireplace a few feet away. Nine surveyed him, not once taking her eyes off his length. Her eyebrows smoothed out and arched. She waited a few seconds before shifting her position and inching closer. Kade tensed, unsure why she was suddenly so compliant. The girl who glared at him in front of everybody and dived into a bush just to avoid him was now moving towards him without hesitation. It put him on edge.
“I’ve never hit a woman, but I swear to god if you bite me—”
“I won’t bite you,” Nine said, cringing when she realised she’d cut him off. “I want to bite you,” she clarified, her brows drawing together. “But I won’t.”
Nine gritted her teeth as she moved her gorgeous mouth closer to his naked flesh. Master Kade’s cock pulsed in uneven rhythms, unable to match the tempo of his racing heart. He couldn’t remember the last time he was so tightly coiled. One touch of her moist lips and he was certain he was going to blow all over the place. The muscles in his legs tensed and his toes curled in his shoes as her bottom lip brushed against the head of his penis, collecting his pre-cum. He groaned—a deep, husky groan from his throat—and Nine’s eyes flicked on to his. Her eyes, dark in this light, clouded over curiously and Kade didn’t dare look away. He wanted to look into her large eyes when she opened her mouth and took his whole head inside. Kade felt her hand touch his thigh before he saw it—and it inched closer to his cock the longer he looked at her. He could see it on her face…she was entranced by her own touch and the effect it had on him. Nine was absolutely mesmerised by the sight of Kade seeming so hopeless against her lips and he was showing her more than he wanted to, but she had no fucking idea how hard it was for him to leave her alone. She brushed her bottom lip over his head again and this time Kade managed to keep his shit together, the only giveaway to how good it felt were his teeth raking over his bottom lip.
“Open your mouth.” He moaned, flexing gently against her lips.
Against his flesh, her warm mouth opened and as his cock brushed between her top and bottom lip…there was a knock at the door. Nine jolted backwards, snapped out of her daze and clamped a hand over her mouth. Kade sighed in frustration, prying his finger from the arm rests of his chair. His fingers throbbed. He hadn’t realised he’d been squeezing so hard.
“Your father would like you to come down to the party,” Portia announced through the wooden door.
Kade spoke as he pushed himself back into his pants. It was clear this wasn’t going to happen tonight. His father would keep sending Unfortunates up to get him and eventually come looking for him himself. He didn’t want his father to see him with Nine and give the whole ‘I told you you’d like your own Unfortunate’ speech. Like Vince, his father loved to gloat.
“Tell my father…” Kade looked at Nine, who refused to look back at him. She kept her sights on the varnished floor, cradling her knees to her chest. “That we’ll be right down.”
He raked his fingers through his hair, reached for his drink, and tipped the rest of the contents down his throat.
“Come on, Unfortunate.” He sighed, pushing himself off of the chair. “Let’s go to the party.”
∞
Nine followed closely behind him as they made their way out of the house. As she was about to step out onto the grass, Kade slammed his hand against the other side of the door frame, straightening his elbow out and blocking her from exiting the house. “You don’t go wandering, you keep your mouth shut, and you steer clear of Vince, got it?”
She eyed him curiously—the kind of look Unfortunates weren’t allowed to have. If she was anyone else’s, she’d be backhanded across the mouth. Kade was beginning to wonder if she slept through all of her classes.
“Why don’t you like your brother?” she asked.
Kade thought they killed curiosity in those Unfortunate camps. Then again, it was clear Nine wasn’t like the others.
“If you don’t want what happened upstairs between us to happen between you and Vince, I suggest you stay away from him. I’ll tell you now, if he ever gets his hands on you, he won’t be satisfied with you only brushing your lips against his cock.” Kade lowered his hand. “And for that bothersome curiosity of yours, imagine hardcore throat fucking.”
Nine’s face turned white as she subconsciously raised a hand to her throat. Kade smirked. The more he scared her, the better. Vince wasn’t like Kade. Kade liked passion and sensual sex. Vince liked to fuck. End of story. He lowered his arm and stepped out into the yard. It was all done up in fancy lights and classy decorations—things Kade didn’t really care for. Pretending to enjoy the night wasn’t going to be his biggest struggle, however. His biggest struggle lay in the Unfortunate that strolled along behind him. All he could think about was her soft mouth. All he wanted to do was take her back upstairs and finish what they’d started. He wanted to see Nine curious and confused by him…he wanted to see her want to touch him. He exhaled.
The night was still young.