N icholai Grimm is the 28-year-old billionaire CEO of Grimm Defense & Technology .

Natasha Greenwell is the 23-year-old college student majoring in Mechanical Engineering .

One fateful night out with her roommate to a supposed fundraiser has Natasha in Nicholai’s sights .

Nicholai isn’t a man who takes no for an answer but that’s a word Natasha uses often .

In the dark world of BDSM, Nicholai tries to steer the beautiful woman into an agreement with him .

Natasha is anything but controllable. Her father, an FBI agent, taught her how to handle herself from a young age. And it is her father who has his sights on Nicholai. His plan is to uncover the shady weapons dealings he believes the company is making .

Sparks fly when both of their fathers intervene in their personal affairs. Can the couple overcome such huge adversity? Or will Nicholai’s ways be more than Natasha can handle, ending them for good? Perhaps Christmas will have a miracle in store for them …

* * *

T he Brand Part One

N ATASHA

T he curtain blew into the room through the screenless, third-floor window. The cool night breeze filled our little dorm suite with sweet fresh air on that Friday night. I sat on her bed, keeping my roommate, Dani, company as she curled her hair at her extravagant makeup table .

Daniella Day was a tall girl with long, dark hair and eyes. A real exotic beauty with slender curves that made men weak at the knees and do things they wouldn’t normally do. That evening she was babbling on and on about a party while I was studying for my midterms. With a major in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Publications, I didn’t have one easy class. I really needed to get some studying accomplished .

I was trying to tune her out, as she’d insisted on having someone around her while she got ready, in order to give her any constructive criticism necessary for her to get as close to perfect as possible, but she wasn’t taking the hint. She’d been droning on and on about the rich men who’d be at the party she was going to. Her scene was not mine, even though we were pretty good friends .

“Tasha, it’s a fundraiser for God’s sake! And I promised I’d bring another girl this time. I know this isn’t your kind of thing. But you know you need money and you’ll make money doing this. The other girl I had lined up forgot to let me in on some pertinent information about herself that excluded her from going. But I know you have everything up to date and you take care of yourself in the birth control department. Since I took you with me to our last clinic visit, I know you’re STD free so you’re a natural for this.” She plopped down on her bed, wearing a thin, pink, silk robe. I had no idea what type of skimpy get up it was covering but I knew it’d be more than a little risqué. When she donned the little robe, it meant she was headed to an exclusive place, a members’ only type of club. I’d never been to one of those places with her, despite invitations to join her almost every time she went to one of the functions. And the fact you needed to be on birth control and STD free was a definite red flag for me .

“Listen, Dani, I told you I have a paper to do. I swear I would consider it if I didn’t have midterms,” I said, looking over my reading glasses at her pouting face .

“Please, Tasha! I swear I’ll do anything to repay you for this favor.” She gave me a sly grin .

I had nothing I needed her to do for me. But I did need money. My parents had strict rules about taking care of one’s self. I was a bit short that month. The bills were coming due and I was on the verge of begging my mother for the extra money I’d need to make ends meet. That would cost me plenty. A lecture from her, then my father and I’d have to be their slave, essentially, for at least two weekends. But still, the party wasn’t gelling with me. “I don’t care , Dani .”

Thinking she was done, I returned my focus back to my laptop. Then I felt a ton of weight on me as Dani had jumped on top of me, knocking me to the side of the tiny twin bed. “I promise you’ll only be there for an hour, two at the most!” The onslaught of tickle torture began, making me giggle even though I did not find it funny in the least .

When her assault ended, I gave her a look as she had her arms wrapped around me and her leg over mine. After being pestered and wanting her to shut up, as well as needing money, I gave into her and decided to go with her to the party. There was a tiny part of me that wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I knew it had to be on the darker side of life. I had no idea how dark it was, though. I had no idea the depth of darkness it would bring out in me either .

She said it would only be two hours at the most, which would give me time to do more studying. I didn’t know what type of fundraiser it was but she gave me a red silk corset with lace inlays and a masquerade mask covered in black velvet. Tossing a pair of fishnet pantyhose and some black high heels on the bed, she meant for me to get dressed for the evening, igniting my curiosity and a spark of danger inside of me .

Instead of asking questions I’d get answers to that I’m sure would’ve made me change my mind, I just went along with it, for her, and the money, of course. Plus, my damn curiosity !

“Okay, so there are some rules,” she said as she tied up the corset in the back of the sexy, yet slutty outfit she’d made me wear .

“Rules, for what?” I asked with confusion. I wasn’t a freak by any means. The get up was one thing, I was prepared to be the men’s eye candy but nothing more than that! What else could there be ?

“This is a BBC fundraiser. The reason we wear the masks is so no one knows the identity of anyone there. The men wear them too. Except, you have to tell them your real name, if they ask for it. And if they ask you to remove your mask, you need to do it. As a matter of fact, you should do just about anything you’re told to. Within reason, of course. It’s all up to you how much of yourself you give,” she said, which didn’t make any sense to me .

“Wait, so you mean to tell me I have to tell some man, that I don’t know, my name? But I can’t even see his face or know his name?” I turned around to look at her with a raised brow. “And just what does BBC stand for, anyway ?”

“Billionaire Bad Boy Club.” She pushed me back around so she could finish tying me up. “It’s nothing really bad, Tasha. These men are well to do business men. Some of them have wives and families to protect, even their careers. So just go with it and play by the rules. Don’t ask any man who shows interest in you what his name is or what he does to make his money. Don’t ask anything except maybe what he likes to drink so you can fetch him a drink. You’re to play the part of a sexy, doting, submissive woman. Kind of like a waitress, only you get to touch the handsome devils, if they let you, of course. Never touch anyone unless they tell you to .”

“What kind of fundraiser is this?” I asked as she began to apply makeup in a generous fashion to my face .

She ignored my question. “They pay handsomely for us to entertain them. The less you know, the better .”

I nodded my head in utter confusion. In hindsight, I should’ve opted out of that so called fundraiser. Instead, I felt a sense of obligation to help her out as her friend and an obligation to myself to get the money I needed to pay the bills without getting into debt with my parents. And even an obligation to my curiosity. A thing I’d done little to appease in my life .

After she curled my hair and piled it on top of my head using hairpins with tiny diamond-like beads all over them, making me look pretty great, she pulled out black cloaks for us to wear to cover our sexy outfits. Then we left our dorm and went to a long black car that was waiting for us in the college dorm’s parking lot .

The driver was a tall man, wearing a chauffeur’s uniform. His face was long and pale. My instincts told me to go back inside and forget the thing she wanted me to do. But the money made me push that down and I got into the car .

Dani opened the mini fridge inside of the limo and handed me two, short, crystal glasses then took out some kind of amber liquor and filled them to the top. “This will ease your nerves. The men do not like the women to be nervous. They prefer them supple and yielding .”

As she sat back on the long, black leather seat next to me, she took one of the glasses from me and held it up. I clinked mine to hers and we both took long sips. The drink burned all the way down my throat and into my stomach. “You make it sound as if we’re to be some kind of hookers,” I said .

Her laughter peeled through the air and her dark eyes danced. I saw her turn into a woman I didn’t even know. “Hookers? No, nothing that trashy. Just be nice, fun, sexy and let them do to you what they want to. They pay nicely. A pat on the ass can earn you a hundred-dollar-chip in your bra. That kind of thing. It’s nothing terrible .”

It might sound easy the way she said it but my morals were beginning to come to the surface at a rapid pace. Then her hand was pushing the glass to my mouth. I took the drink to dampen those pesky morals of mine and finally, it seemed I wasn’t so worried about what some man or men might do to me. I hardly felt a thing, anyway !

We finally arrived at a huge building in the middle of nowhere that looked abandoned, yet the parking area was full of expensive looking cars. I instantly felt nervous. All the alcohol seemed to have burned off with the nervousness. I was shaking like a leaf .

“We’re here. Please remember what I said.” Dani looked over at me with a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. It did nothing to comfort me. And I contemplated asking the driver to take me back home. As Dani tugged my hand, pulling me out of the car with her, I found that was not an option as the driver sped away .

“Wow, he took off quickly, didn’t he?” I asked as I could smell the burning rubber from the tires as he peeled off .

“Some of the women who come to these types of things get cold feet and climb back into the car. He has other women to pick up and there’s not time to take anyone who gets a sudden attack of the morals, back home,” Dani told me as she pulled me along with her to the large, rusty looking, metal door .

She knocked three times as I stood nervously, looking around for any signs of danger. It just wasn’t a place for two young college girls to be at this time of night .

A small window opened and a pair of blue eyes looked out at us. “BBC entertainment,” Dani said. The door opened and a stocky guy with a falcon mask on let us inside to a dimly lit small entrance .

“Day, you brought a new friend,” he said as his eyes ran up and down the length of my body .

“Greenwell is her name,” she told him .

I held my hand the same way Dani did and he stamped it with a black X. Our cloaks were taken, then we walked into the darkened hall to a stairwell. Some creamy colored candles made light which bounced off the wet muggy stone walls as we walked down the spiral stairwell. Our shadows bounced around as the muffled sounds of music and a draught of cool air came crawling up the stairs .

With a few more flights we were standing outside of a big red door where the music became louder. She knocked again, this time, four knocks on each upper corner of the door. “BBC sex,” she gave as another code, sending a chill through me. A small window was slid open and a pair of brown eyes looked at us .

The door opened. There was a small-framed woman with perky breasts which were exposed in a leather bustier. She wore a leather slave choker around her neck and a simple black mask hid her identity. “Day,” she greeted my friend then her eyes turned to meet mine .

She held her hand out but I hesitated a bit before taking it. Dani nodded in approval. “This is Greenwell,” she introduced me. “Take her hand, and she’ll take us to where we need to be .”

After taking her hand, she led us to a dimly lit room with men everywhere playing blackjack, chess, and poker. Women were at every table, half naked with masquerade masks on, wearing lingerie like Dani and I were .

“I’m going over here to the poker table.” Dani left me in the middle of the room, making me furious at her. She’d just abandoned me like I knew what the hell to do !

I watched in complete shock as she was immediately fondled by a man in a tuxedo and black mask then she let him kiss her without so much as a word being said between them .

Someone bumped into me, bringing me out of my stupor. I walked away without looking to see who it was. I was afraid it’d be some man who expected me to allow him to touch me in private areas and put his tongue down my throat without so much as a hello said between us first .

I made my way to the chess table as I loved playing. I still felt nervous as I was half naked in a room full of people who I didn’t know. I could feel the eyes on me and it was the most uncomfortable thing I’d ever felt. But I was stuck there for at least a couple of hours, if what Dani told me was true, which I was beginning to doubt .

The night had barely started and I was ready to leave. I chided myself about my swift decision to make money doing this. It was a mistake and my friend was into some shady shit !

But I had no choices. I had to play by the rules. It seemed they were obvious. Let the men do whatever they wanted to you and act like you liked it. But how was I going to pull that off, was the constant thought which roamed all over my mind .

This wasn’t who I was !

NICHOLAI

I had watched the curvy blonde enter the party with none other than Daniella Day. She was the daughter of Supreme Court Judge, Vincent Day. She had been a permanent stain on the BBC and she worked the room full of billionaires .

Every so often she would bring a newcomer to be tainted by the men and their money. But this one she brought tonight was more nervous than the others. As if nothing could push her into comfortability, not even money .

Her small curvy frame was beautiful and her creamy skin tone was accented by the red corset that I only wanted to rip off of her. I felt the thump in my cock as the tingling in my balls was building .

The dirty thoughts in my mind of how I would tame her pussy to only yearn for me were clouding my judgment at the poker table. “Nic, you're drooling, get back in the game,” Tom, an elder, yelled my real name. I shot him an evil look as he knew the rule of the club to never mention our real names .

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her laughing a bit nervously as Jon D. played the whisper game, flicking her ear in between his words. She gently pushed him away as his touching made her look uncomfortable .

My body raged as I wanted to wring him by his old neck and toss him in the pile of rich misfits. I was ready to blow the game to get to her and escape to a room for a personal sexcapade .

“You’re out, Bill,” the dealer called over to me as I had lost all focus on the game. I grabbed my Jack Frost drink and headed toward the direction of the newbie. But she had gone somewhere and I saw Jon D. with another woman as he sat around making jokes .

I made my way down the hall that had old gold wallpaper and oil lamps lining it. I saw the light shining from under the bathroom door and I decided to check to see if she had gone in there .

As I approached the door, I could hear the faucet running. I twisted the knob to see if it was locked. To my surprise, it wasn’t. Making my way inside, I could see her bent over the sink, rinsing her face. She was oblivious to my presence as I stood, admiring her ass as it was in the air, ready for my taking .

I ran my hand over my hardened cock as she continued attending to her business. I supposed the makeup was bothering her as she was washing it all away. “You’re not going to spend the rest of the night cooped up in the bathroom are you?” I asked then her head shot up and she stared at me in the mirror. Her ice-blue eyes looked at me with shock and perhaps there was fear in them as well .

“I…um …I was just rinsing my face and chest. Someone spilled a drink on me,” she explained .

I found her nervousness quite amusing as well as her reason to explain why she was doing what she was doing to me, as if I were her father. Even though in that moment, I would be whomever she wanted me to be. “Your body is beautiful,” I said, then took a sip from my drink .

Her gorgeous eyes shifted around as her chest rose and fell in a rapid beat. “I’ll excuse myself so you can handle your business,” she said, walking toward the door only for me to stop her .

“I want to make you my business.” I ran my hand down her cheek to her breast .

She’d left her mask beside the sink and I put it back on for her. “I’ve seen you but no one else should .”

This had to be her first time at one of these things and I was going to be sure she’d be mine for the night. And no one else’s !

Natasha

I was almost speechless as the man, who I had seen at the poker table staring at me, was now in front of me. He had scared me a bit. I hadn’t heard him come into the bathroom .

His dark eyes were penetrating behind the Phantom of the Opera mask he wore. His dark hair was silky and shiny. He was the epitome of a handsome devil .

He chuckled, lightly. I guess he found me amusing. “Your body is beautiful,” he complimented me .

My throat all of a sudden became dry as my insides thumped at his seductive tone. “I’ll excuse myself so you can handle your business,” I told him as I made my way to the door .

I couldn’t think of anything else to say as my mind was jumbled with very inappropriate sexual thoughts for reasons I didn’t fully understand. But before I could make it to the door, his arm snaked around my frame. His breath smelled of Jack Daniels and mint .

His face was just inches away from mine. “I want to make you my business.” He ran his hand over my cheek then down to my breast, making breathing stop for me. “I’ve seen you but no one else should.” He picked up the mask I’d taken off to wash my face and tied it back into place .

“Thank you,” I said. “I forgot about that .”

“Do you know the rules, newbie?” he asked in a whisper .

“My name is Natasha but you can call me…” he placed one of his large fingers on my lips to shush me .

“Natasha, it is. Now, Natasha, you will do as Bill says or you will suffer the consequences. Understood?” He eyed me through his dark mask. His expression was demanding .

My conscience was saying no. But my curiosity took charge. I stared at him as my inhibitions were quickly dissipating with the presence of the dominating man, I had every reason to believe was completely gorgeous and completely out of my league, were we in the real world. Why not have a taste of the man I’d never be able to obtain in the light of day with no masks to hide us? “Yes, I understand Bill.” I bit my bottom lip as his demeanor changed to one of power and lust .

“Turn around,” he demanded .

I did as he’d told me to and turned, facing the wall. My mind was screaming at me to run but my body wanted to know what exactly he was going to do to me .

His hands never left my body as I could feel him breathing down my neck, planting kisses along my neckline. “You are mine for the next 24 hours and what I request you must fulfill. Do you understand?” he asked .

I turned my head slightly to the right as I had my own question. “What if I don’t want to fulfill your requests?” I was taunting him but still wanted to see what he wanted out of me .

“Then you will be punished, vigorously. No outbursts, no touching, no passionate kisses, and no talking. When I want you, you will come, no questions asked.” His warm breath tickled the nape of my neck. “Now, do as I say and you will be rewarded.” He pressed his cock against my ass .

I could feel his hardness as it screamed for attention, pressing into me. Then I felt a cold wet something, press against the warm skin of the back of my right shoulder. “What is that?” I turned fully around, trying to reach the spot, looking at his eyes as they held no emotion .

“I just branded you with my stamp. So when you walk out of this bathroom everyone will know that you belong to me.” He moved his hands down the side of my waist. “Tell me that you agree with this and we can proceed ?”

Did I agree to what he was asking me to do? Be at his mercy for 24 hours? My body decided for me as my mouth opened and unrehearsed words came out more quickly than I’d anticipated, “I agree .”

A moan left his plump caramel lips and soon he had my legs wrapped around him and my back pinned against the cold marble wall. “Reach down and pull off my belt,” he said with a commanding tone to his deep voice .

What I was about to let happen wasn’t a thing I’d ever done or saw myself doing but his presence was more than dominating. It was electric and I felt anything but like my usual self. So I did as I was told .

I managed to unbuckle his belt and pulled it through the loops. “Do you trust me?” he asked with a concerned tone .

“I’m pretty much at your mercy so trust has to be key.” I gave him an even stare .

He chuckled as he used the belt to hold my arms behind my back while still holding me up with his strong frame. His cologne invaded my nostrils as I closed my eyes and thought about what I was doing, letting this stranger tie me up. It was not the time for thinking, it was the time for doing. Things had gone too far to stop !

Our lips met and they fell in sync with one another as our tongues fought each other for dominance. It had been a while since I had kissed anyone. His kiss was the best I’d ever had though. I knew that much for certain .

My hands were tied. I knew it was to refrain me from any type of sexual affection. His hands found my spot as he pushed the corset to one side and then he ripped the panties I had on at the seams and placed a bigger hole in the crotch of my fishnet stockings. “Open your eyes .”

I did as he told me to and felt his fingers maneuver in and out of me while tugging on my clit. “Oh my…” he stuck his tongue back into my mouth to muffle my chiming pleasures .

I bit his lip as he shoved his massive shaft inside of me without warning. “Natasha!” he groaned in the crook of my neck. My walls caved around his intrusive entrance .

He pumped in and out of me faster and then slower. “Your pussy feels so good wrapped around me,” he cooed in my ear .

I couldn’t speak as my body was his captive and so was my mind. His hips swirled around in a circular motion as he found a rhythm that we both could dance to. I moved up and down as he continued to push his way in and his balls smacked the cup of my ass as he stiffened inside of me. “Awww...yessss...” he groaned as I tightened my muscles around him and kept my pace as he slowed his own .

I was at my peak and so was he. “Fuck me harder Bill.” I moaned as I bit the bottom of my lip in a fever. He did as I demanded and wrapped my legs around him more as if he wanted to bury himself inside of me. “I’m…uhmmmm…I’m!” I bit into the crook of his neck as I came undone .

“Bad girl,” he whispered as his cock jerked with heated bursts inside of me .

Our bodies collapsed together as sweat beads rolled down my breasts. My legs were still cuffed in the fold of his arms as he regained his composure .

“You are to be punished for your outbursts,” he said in an even but stern tone. I looked at him with confusion as he let me down, gently. “Now turn around.” His tone now cold .

I turned around, hoping he was going to fuck me from behind this time. But my hopes soon crashed down with a slap to the ass twice, then he explained, “Those are for your sexual outbursts.” He flicked my ear with his tongue. I wanted to let out a curdling cry yet I knew then that it would cause another slap. Even so, there were two more that followed. “Those are for talking.” He flicked his tongue at my other ear. I felt as though he was enjoying this type of obedience he was getting out of me. “One more for good measure.” I felt his tongue lick the lining of my neck .

Before I could turn around, he had slipped out of the bathroom as I stood there with my ass sore and completely wet between my legs. My mind was a whirlwind as I had just fucked a stranger. I didn’t know his real name nor did I know what his face really looked like. I could pass the man on a sidewalk someday and never be aware he was the one who took me like he owned me then paddled my ass for enjoying it !

What was worse was I had to obey his requests for 24 hours. I had midterms to study for. If he really kept me for 24 hours, I’d leave with only a few hours to rest and study before my classes started on Monday .

He didn’t know me from a can of paint. My mind was set, that little rendezvous wouldn’t go beyond that building. Or so I thought !

NICHOLAI

I saw the lust in her eyes and the feeling of her wrapping around me made me want her even more. She had so many things to be desired but the main one was her rebelliousness .

Her breasts were beautiful and I managed to get her ID from her corset bra. We had a deal and I was going to make sure she was mine the entire 24 hours for whatever I desired from her .

I grabbed another drink and sat in the back at the blackjack table and watched as she soon emerged from the bathroom. Her corset was snapped closed as her panties were in my pocket and ripped. I took them to remind me of her and the way she felt .

She took a drink from one of the servers and walked toward the poker table. I knew she was looking for Dani. I had given her Natasha’s ID. But her friend was nowhere to be found and I knew why as I had seen Dani disappear into the dark to a private room under a man’s arm .

The place was still in full swing and men watched Natasha, marveling at how she kept her head high. You couldn’t tell she’d just been fucked a mere five minutes earlier, by how she carried herself .

Her blonde hair had a few more tendrils escaping the loose bun she had it in. I sipped my drink as I threw another green chip on the table and waved over the server .

I grabbed a Jack straight and gave the waitress a blue chip to give to Natasha with a small note. I watched as she gave it to her and whispered in her ear .

Natasha looked around but didn’t see where I was sitting. Before the server could walk off, she grabbed her lightly by the arm and gave her what looked to be the chip back. I knew she would be one hell of a newbie to tame but I was up for the challenge .

The fact was her turning down the money enticed me immensely. She’d allowed me to fuck her and wanted nothing in return. That wasn’t a thing the women there ever did .

I saw many men wanted her but they saw my stamp and refrained from approaching her. I had plans for the both of us the next day, so I texted my assistant the information I got off Natasha’s ID. My drink was finished and I was up 6 million in the game so I focused my attention on it and let her be .

NATASHA

I could feel his eyes burning a hole through me but I didn’t know where in the room he was. Every man gawked at me but they didn’t dare make their move as I’m sure they saw his brand on me and knew I was off limits .

My wrists were sore from the tightness of the belt and I still felt the flutters of the butterflies in the pit of my stomach. Every thought, every movement, I could still feel him playing in my pool of ecstasy .

I wanted him to plant himself back inside of me but that was a one-night thing I would definitely keep stored in the special memories section of my brain. I did want another taste of the man before I made my escape. But I couldn’t pick him out of the crowd of similarly dressed men in the dimly lit room. And he didn’t seem to be seeking me out, even though he’d claimed me with his brand .

A few drinks later, a waitress walked up to me with a note and a chip wrapped inside of it. ‘You’ll need some much-needed rest for 24 hours of the unknown.’ it read and I looked around the room again, to no avail. I handed the young woman the chip back. “Tell him, no thank you for me, please .”

She nodded and looked at me with some confusion. I supposed most women kept the money they were given. But his claiming me then ditching me had me pissed off. I didn’t want money from the man, I wanted another round of mind blowing sex from him but he seemed to be hiding from me for some reason. So fuck him, was my only thought .

The liquor had me in a haze, as I stuck to wine on a day to day basis at home. I knew it was time for me to get home and finish my studying. I pulled my cell from my side pocket and called a taxi, pinpointing my location to the cab driver’s cell .

This was the last party I would attend at any BBC function. Or encounter any of their members. I hoped the man wouldn’t chase me down to try to keep me there for 24 hours. He had to know that would be a criminal act .

After I finished my last whiskey sour, I sat the glass on a table and headed to the big red door. The same woman greeted me with a flashlight. “See you soon, Greenwell.” She gave me a grin, noticing my brand. “That Bill is one hunk of man meat, you’re one lucky female .”

I nodded my head in her direction, unsure of anything, as the amount of alcohol I had consumed took over my train of thought. I stumbled my way up the steps, my hands slipping on the wetness of the walls as I fumbled with my composure .

My body quivered with the draughty wind. A hand snaked around me. “You had too many, too fast.” The sound of the voice was so familiar. But my stomach was quaking at the unsettling of the drinks and absence of food .

“I can make…” I began to say before feeling the overwhelming amount of saliva filling my mouth .

The hands still snugged around my waist, we made it to the second door. The door swung open and the air was cold and brisk as my overheated body was now shivering .

“I’ll take you home.” The guy said as he picked me up, bridal style. Sometime in between, I passed out and could only see street lights every so often when I tried to fight the sleep .

My night had been stranger than fiction and in hind sight, it had only just begun .

I woke up in my bed, naked. My head was pounding from an evident hangover and I only remembered things that happened before I left the party. I was sore from top to bottom and especially the place in between .

I sat up slowly, trying not to move too fast and make anything hurt more than it already was .

I slid out of bed and made my way to the bathroom to wash up. I stepped over the little of nothing I had worn that night that had been tossed to the floor. After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I found my reflection revolting. I heard the sound of music coming from Dani’s room so I wrapped my housecoat around me and went to knock on her door. It swung open to a cheerful and happy, Dani. “Good morning!” she said, stepping aside for me to come in .

I walked in and laid on the foot of her bed as she danced around, singing and packing. “Where are you going,” I asked, sitting up on my elbows .

“To see a man about a dog,” she said, sticking her tongue out at me .

“That’s one special dog I see,” I said, annoyed with her sarcasm .

“Oh, you, big baby. I’m going to another party but this time, it’s in Boston.” She smiled widely .

I got up to leave. “Well, good for you. I’m going to take a much-needed shower and look for some aspirin to take away my headache. Be safe,” I said, walking to the door .

“Tasha, you should come.” She pulled me back by the back of my robe. I felt the chill of cool air hitting my bare shoulder .

“No way! I went with you last night and I’m not going to any more of those fundraisers.” I held my ground .

She jerked the robe down. “Let me see your brand. Who’s is it?” she asked, turning me around .

“He said his name was Bill,” I said as I pulled my robe back up .

“Bill. Which one?” she asked as if I knew .

“You tell me. You’re the one who knows those people. And who was that old man you were with last night ?”

“Jon D. He’s so nice. But he’s never seen fit to brand me .”

“He was the old guy who spilled his drink on me last night.” I shuttered in disgust. “He’s old enough to be your grandfather’s grandfather .”

She gave me a grin. “Yeah, well he has way more money than my grandfather’s grandfather ever had.” She shrugged her shoulders and resumed packing as I rolled my eyes in her direction then walked out the door .

Dani was all about money and only attended college to keep her father happy. He was a hard ass in the courtroom but a softy when it came to her .

Something had to have happened to Dani, she was broken by it and didn’t care to talk about it. I loved her all the same, though .

Whatever this BBC was she was attending, it had some deep roots to what she wanted to be. May it be a wife or a mistress, she cared not for the wives and children of those men. I, on the other hand, didn’t care to be bought as a plaything by any married businessman. Billionaire or not !

After showering, I heard the front door close and knew that Dani had left and the small apartment was all mine. It was no luxury as she was barely there anyway, to begin with. I put on a pair of jogging pants, a tank top, and my tennis shoes. It was going to be a casual dress day for me as I was going to do nothing but study. But first I needed coffee .

I grabbed my keys and headed to the door. Before I opened it, I noticed a box sitting on the table with my name on it. Putting my keys down, I opened the box to find a note. ‘Let the 24 hours begin. Take the mask and meet me at the BBC building at 1pm. Don’t be late .’

I looked at the mask and the bra and underwear set in black silk that was wrapped in pretty gold paper. A smile crept over my face as I knew exactly who it was from .

Totally oblivious to how he obtained my address and too excited and nervous at the time to care, I went back into the bathroom to put on the lingerie and some decent clothes to cover it .

My gut and brain were telling me to forget his request, yet the butterflies were screaming for action. I put on the pieces and a pair of white jeans. Adding a navy blue blouse and a pair of navy blue heels. I snatched my messy bun out and put some curls in it, applying some nude makeup to set off my look. “We’ll see how this goes.” I winked at myself in the mirror .

I didn’t know why I was doing what I was doing. The unknown man had me under his sexy spell. All I knew for sure, was he wanted me and I wanted him .

NICHOLAI

My assistant, Jennifer, sat with a folder in front of her with a photo of Natasha Greenwell and her life story in it. It seemed Natasha had grown up in Nantucket and moved to New York for college on a scholarship .

Her father was an FBI agent. Little was known about her mother. She was attending New York university with a Major in Mechanical Engineering. I knew just the tactic to get to her and it was going to be a gamble at best but worth a try. But that plan was only if she tried to ditch me .

“So you’re back at it again with these BBC newbies,” Jennifer snickered. She was my younger cousin as well as my assistant, and I loved her dearly .

“That’s my business, Jen.” I kissed her forehead as I took the folder and left her office. I put the folder inside of my vault for safe keeping .

Natasha was work in disguise and I wanted her in every which way for my pleasures and desires. My watch read twelve thirty, so it was nearly time for us to meet at the BBC building. I left the office and headed to my town car where my driver was waiting .

It took all of an hour to get there, due to New York traffic. I hated being late for anything whether it was a business meeting or a pleasure meeting .

“Josh, take the back way,” I called out to my driver. He did as I said and we drove up to find not a car in sight. “She should’ve been here by now .”

Moments later my eyes landed on a white, Toyota Camry, pulling in. I was shocked a bit as my heart skipped a beat when I saw her gorgeous face and knew she was there for me. I had been afraid she’d blow me off .

I pulled on my mask as I got out of the car and pulled the keys to the club out of my pants pocket. No one else was there, we’d be all alone. She saw me coming but waited by her car. After unlocking the door, I waved for her to come in and waited for her to put her own mask on .

She still had nervousness all over her and I found it sexy that she was nervous. “Natasha, glad you made it.” I smiled at her .

“I almost didn’t,” she said as she walked passed me .

“I’m glad you did.” I gave her a bigger smile which she didn’t seem to notice at all .

We made our way down the stairwell and to the red door, in silence. I opened it for her as it was empty and no evidence of last night stood out, except what was in my memory. I took her hand and lead her to one of the rooms .

“What am I doing here?” she asked .

“You belong to me for 24 hours, Natasha. Remember?” I asked, leading her to the bed .

She looked around until our eyes met. “Don’t patronize me. I know what you wanted, I just don’t get why we’re here.” She stood next to the bed .

I inched closer to her, closing the gap between us as my height towered over her small frame. “Like I said, because you belong to me right now.” I gently pushed her onto the bed .

She eyed me, as if she wanted to protest. I pulled my shirt off first. Then I pushed her shirt up, further and further to her neck as I planted kisses and sucked marks on her body .

My body was aching for her, so I took her shirt off then the bra I’d bought for her. My hands slid over her plump breasts and I leaned over to take one in my mouth, and found a nice sized scar under her left breast .

She pushed my hand and closed her eyes, as if in shame. “Don’t.” I said, moving her hands to her sides. I ran my fingers over the old scar. “What happened ?”

“It’s a long story with a bad ending,” she said as she stopped struggling to stop my attention to the minor imperfection on her otherwise flawless skin .

“Maybe you’ll tell me about it next time,” I said then kissed the scar .

My hands roamed down to her crotch as I unbuttoned her jeans and pushed them off. Her right nipple was between my teeth as I probed and played with her breasts. My tongue swirled around her nipples, sucking them as her body vibrated .

The panties I bought her would look more enticing on the floor than on her. I ripped them at the sides and pulled them off of her. My cock was pulsating so much, I thought it would burst through my slacks. But I maintained my self-control as I continued to tease her .

Her moans began to fill the room. “Do you remember the rules?” I asked her .

She nodded. “Yes, I remember the rules,” she panted, out of breath .

“Recite them to me.” I demanded .

She gave me a look as if to ask if I were serious. My expression was stern and she caught on quickly. “No touching, no passionate kissing, no talking, and no outbursts. But why no outbursts?” she asked .

I sat up to look at her at eye level. “Because I said so.” I told her evenly. I’d rather watch a woman’s sexual emotion than hear it because anyone can make a sound but the face doesn’t lie. “Take off your mask .”

“You first.” She sat up on her elbows only for me to lightly push her back down .

I knew she was getting frustrated with my antics but I loved seeing her flustered. “Now, Natasha,” I said, sternly .

She did as she was told but added in a bit of sass when she said, “There !”

“You will obey me today.” I told her as I caressed her left cheek, trying to entice her into doing anything I told her to. I was trying to show her I meant to have her the ways I wanted to, with no back talk or sass .

Her eyes looked at me with a purity that I couldn’t explain. She never spoke a word. She became mute, which I wasn’t sure I liked. But I forged ahead. I stood up and held out my hand to her. “Stand .”

She did and grabbed onto my hand, allowing me to pull her up. Her mouth stayed closed in a loose expression that told me she was allowing me to do this, she was not afraid and it was obvious she thought she was in some sort of control. Which she was not !

“Now walk over there,” I said, pointing to a spot in the far right corner. Before she could go, I took her by the chin. “Do you trust me ?”

“Yes, I trust you,” she said in a whisper .

Her breasts were nice and perky, ready to be tamed and teased. She had goosebumps along her body and a look of innocence and purity. I took her to the corner of the room. “Hold your arms straight out to the sides,” I said, cranking down the holster. Her eyes widened as she saw the black leather straps that would soon hold her naked body in them while I fucked her into oblivion. “Don’t be afraid .”

I caressed her right cheek trying to comfort her before I buckled her arms into the straps and then her thighs and feet. I cranked it up to the level where our midsections would meet. She had a frightened look in her eyes. Then I put on a mouth strap to help her with the outbursts as I knew she would rebel on that one .

I cranked the straps holding her thighs until she was in a sitting position. With her in place, I unbuckled my pants and was fully naked and the sight of my cock made her eyes fill with lust instead of fear. I grabbed a feather and tickled her, intimately, until she squirmed in the holster. “Do you want me inside of you?” I asked, taunting her .

She nodded as she couldn’t speak. I put the feather down and moved in between her thighs and pressed my cock to her clit, rubbing it gently as her clit pulsated. The wetness had me ready to plunge in but I wanted her to beg. Her eyes rolled but she wouldn’t beg me .

I backed away and kneeled down and flicked my tongue at her clit and her body jumped as my tongue vibrated and swirled around her clit. Seeing the want in her eyes I let my tongue dive into her canal as I moved it feverishly in and out .

A muffled scream escaped her and I knew she was begging me then. I stood back up and sucked on her right nipple while pinching the other. My tongue flicked back and forth over her nipple and I held my cock in the other hand, rubbing it against her wet folds .

I stuck just the tip in and she tensed up, I guess from some residual pain from the last night. I slowly guided my way into her tight walls as they gripped me, compromising my composure. She felt better than anyone I’d ever had. Probably because she was so inexperienced is what I chalked it up to at the time. Still tight from lack of use .

Moving in a steady motion and playing with her nipples, she slowly relaxed her muscles and I picked up my pace. “I’m going to fuck you so good you’ll only think of me.” I eyed her as I spoke .

She moaned and I continued to maneuver inside her. “I want you to orgasm at my command every time I invade this pussy from now on.” I rocked her back and forth as my momentum was now a forceful motion. I could feel my balls sticking to her ass as I went into her. “You like the way I fuck you?” I asked her with a lustful tone. She nodded as her eyes tried to stay open and focused. But her grip tightened around me as she was almost there. I quickly pulled out. “Not yet.” She groaned in frustration until I pushed it back inside her all the way .

Her head fell back as if she was in pure bliss. I was ready to climax so I pulled out again and unstrapped her. But left the mouth strap on and took her to the wall where I made her face it, then quickly cuffed her hands and hung them over the hook on the wall. I brought her hips back toward me .

“Are you ready?” I asked her. She nodded, so I pushed my way in, this time with a speed she didn't see coming. I was rock hard and my balls were tight. I was so ready to let it all out. “Fuck, Natasha, you’re so wet.” I groaned as she moaned. I knew her orgasm was approaching and I wanted to have one with her. “Now, Natasha.” I groaned as I slammed into her as my balls released the pressure. She made a muffled scream in ecstasy as her body trembled. She shook violently against my body as our sweat mixed .

She was amazing !

NATASHA

I stood in complete exhaustion as he had just played with my body until I had to beg him to fuck me. I didn’t like the begging part of it at all but the reward was worth it. He wouldn’t let me scream which was hard all on its own .

I stood panting as his warm sweaty body collapsed against mine. My wrists were beginning to hurt in that position as I stood there with my arms slightly above my head where he had hooked them on the wall .

“Now that you have obeyed me, you can move to the next level,” he said with a matter of fact tone .

In my mind, I was trying to grasp that level, there was never any talk about levels! He unbuckled the mouth strap. I had to open and close my mouth a few times, as it was sore from the strap. “I thought I belonged to you for 24 hours. Then I go back to my life and you go back to yours. I mean I only went to the party as a fill in. I’m not going to be one of those girls. Not ever .”

He laughed, lightly. “This isn't about BBC. This is about me finding my newbie. You are my new recruit. You see, I branded you, which gave me the right to you for as long as I want. And, I want you, Natasha. All to myself .”

I was in a total mental mind fuck at that point. I had never agreed to being branded nor being any fucking recruit. “Dani tricked me into going, didn’t she? So I could be branded by some sex addicted asshole of a billionaire. She knew what would happen to me and she did it without telling me a thing about what would happen if I went with her .”

“Don’t feel betrayed. Dani did only what is required of her through her contract. You see we all have our wants and I always get what I want. If you want out, you must find another BBC member willing to take you with my brand on you. Trust me that’s next to impossible,” he said, leaving me angry .

My blood was boiling and I wanted nothing more to do with the man nor his sick games. All because I helped a friend out with a favor and was nearly desperate for money. I wasn’t that desperate and if she’d been honest with me, I’d never have gone. “This is bullshit! I never agreed to this .”

“Did you let me stamp you? Did you let me fuck you not once but twice? And did you agree to belong to me ?”

He asked an awful lot of questions as my mind was trying to play catch up to this catch 22. My mind was fuzzy with the last night's drinking. I couldn’t recall if I agreed to those things or if he just fucking did them. But I did agree, in a sober state, to go there with him that day. I did do that much. His hand grazed my shoulder and I pulled away from him with a look of disgust on my face. “Don’t .”

“Natasha. You know the rules,” he reminded me of him being in charge. But at that moment I didn’t care about his fucking rules. I wanted to hate him for tricking me into that mess of a club he belonged to. He tried to touch me again and I batted his hand away. “Natasha, that’s grounds for a punishment and after that amazing fuck I don’t want to punish you .”

He came closer to me even as I flinched at the touch of his hand on my body but didn’t pull away or try to stop him. The fear was creeping in with the reality that I was completely alone with the man. I wanted to erase him from my memory .

“I don’t care what you do at this point because I’m not playing your sick game. Bill, or whatever your name is,” I spat angrily as I gathered my courage and glared at him .

But that only seemed to amuse him as a smile curved his caramel colored lips. “Have it your way.” He walked away and gathered my clothes off the floor as I laid on the bed in a weak puddle of self-loathing for what I’d done .

I’d let a total stranger brand me and fuck me in a bathroom. In a warehouse full of people, I didn’t know. To top that off, I was back in the same warehouse being fucked again by the man, with my agreement .

Every inch of my body ached. My mouth was sore from the mouth strap he’d put back on me to keep me quiet. And I was not sure what he was doing at that moment, gathering my clothes. Surely he wasn’t going to let me leave that place. Not so soon .

“Put on your clothes,” he said, nonchalantly as he tossed them onto the bed next to me .

Easing my sore body off the bed, I pulled my jeans and shirt on, leaving the bra and torn panties he’d sent me right where he’d thrown them. My mouth hurt and I could feel the raw places on both sides of it where the leather had cut into my flesh .

He watched me as I dressed, then I picked up my heels and turned to leave. He didn’t say a word as I touched the door knob. I was sure he didn’t mean to let me leave before the 24 hours was up. I half expected him to come up behind me and drag me back to his torturous bed. Instead, I saw him out of the corner of my eye, lie down on the bed, on his side. He was watching me .

When nothing came from him, I turned the knob and opened the door. I don’t know why I didn’t just make a run for it but I didn’t do that at all. I turned back and looked at him .

He looked right back at me with those dark eyes shining at me from behind his black mask. I had so many questions I wanted to ask him. But I knew he wasn’t about to be that man. That man who would suddenly change his nature and be boyfriend material .

That man was anything but the kind of man you took home to meet your father. My father would’ve killed that man. In a heartbeat !

NICHOLAI

As she left the room that day with obvious confusion, I felt as if maybe she wanted something more. Something I didn’t have to give. Whatever it was she desired, I could only fulfill sex and control. But I had enjoyed the sassy beauty as she ranted about belonging to me .

That night I wanted to set the rules down but I couldn’t or she would’ve definitely walked away before I really got to know her. Dani had given me Natasha’s cell number. But she wasn’t responding to any of my messages or calls .

I was beginning to think she liked to be punished. I let her leave that warehouse but I had no intentions of letting her go. I thought she understood that .

With no other choices after a week without her, I went for my backup plan. Like I said, I wanted her. I get what I want, no matter what .

“Nicholai, are you listening,” my father yelled across the board table .

“I hear you, Father.” I looked over at him as I played with the ink pen, still thinking about Natasha .

“So you will close this account by the end of the month? Catch a flight to Bangkok first thing!” he shouted, pushing the client portfolio to me as he got up and walked out of the boardroom with his stakeholders behind him .

My assistant sat at my side as everyone else left the board room. “Jen, get a list of interns so I can have some help around here. We need some fresh faces. Make sure this one is at the top of the list.” I handed her a sheet with a list of names and Natasha Greenwell was the top priority. I wanted her. I wanted her right under my nose !

I sat making business calls the rest of the day before going down to the warehouse for the company. Grimm Defense and Technology was my family owned company and I had been elected as CEO just a year after graduating .

I hated working for my family and I hated the business we were in. I put on my hard hat to walk through the warehouse with the supervisor and line manager. “We’ll have the back orders out by the end of the quarter but we have another problem,” Chris, the warehouse supervisor said, turning toward me .

“Yeah, what's that?” I asked .

They both looked at one another, then Chris said, “The FBI has been lurking around here .”

So it seemed we had fallen under the FBI’s radar for the umpteenth time. “Alright, I’ll handle it. Just don’t make that the gossip of the warehouse.” I said sternly, giving them back the hard hat before I left .

I had an idea just who was lurking around the property and I would be paying them a visit as soon as I had the time to do that. My father didn’t need to get wind of any of that. He’d blame me for certain. He always found some reason for things to be my fault .

My father, Nicholas Grimm, was a hard, controlling man and as much as I couldn’t stand him for it, I found myself being that way many times too .

I grew up under his rule and it wasn’t the best as my mother was a definite mute when it came to him. When I began working at the company my grandfather, my father’s father, had started when he came here from Germany, I became a part of the BBC which was a club my grandfather helped orchestrate .

I found out about my father’s many affairs. I loved my mother, no matter how my father felt about her trapping him as she was a BBC newbie he’d never planned to marry .

My father was anything but faithful to my mother. He told me many times, monogamy was not a human way. I had begun to believe him as I’d yet to find one woman who could hold my attention for any length of time .

It was Natasha who already filled my head more than any other ever had. I knew I needed to get her out of my system and fast .

There was no other way to handle it !

NATASHA

It had been almost two weeks since I’d seen Bill, or whatever his name was, and I was kind of tossing up the idea of giving into him. He had been calling and texting, which I'd ignored .

He also sent gifts with messages that spoke of how I belonged to him. One message was attached to a gorgeous flower arrangement in a very expensive vase. It was explicit, with details of how he’d make me cry with a need for him to fill me again. Which I did feel when I read the words. But I’d yet to indulge in anything with him, as bad as my body was in need of his rapture .

Dani explained to me what was in her contract and how she had fallen into such a ridiculous agreement. But some part of me still felt like she should’ve warned me about what it was I’d be getting myself into by going, including the branding rule. Maybe she was just doing what was demanded of her and it was all a part of her contractual arrangement. I didn’t care at that point. I had effectively gotten away from the spoiled man .

I grabbed a piece of toast as I headed out that day. Headed to class to turn in a research paper. It was my last year and I was ready to be done with the tedious workload .

I had found another box sitting on the counter when I ventured out of my bedroom. The resident hall manager had to be on the man’s payroll as he secretly delivered the boxes to our dorm suite every single day .

Instead of opening it, I took it to my room and hid it away in the closet. I would go through the boxes and see what he had sent me, eventually. As far as I was concerned, he was still on my bad side and no gift would change that .

When I got on campus I noticed a job fair was going on and a recruiter was scouting for interns. I had a few minutes until my class started so I went to see what companies were there .

There weren’t any I was interested in so I walked through the crowd of students and headed on to class. Once I got to class and took a seat, I looked through my emails, noticing three more came during the night from Bill. I deleted them without opening any of them .

Professor O’Hara came into his classroom and made a bee line for me. “Hi, Professor O’Hara.” I gave him a smile as I put away my cell .

“Good morning, Miss Greenwell, I’m guessing you brought your research paper.” He took a seat a few chairs away .

“Yes, this time, I finished it.” I chuckled at him because that midterm paper was never turned in and this was a makeup paper .

“I wanted to see you because you have an internship offer and I gave them a recommendation for you. It’s not my ideal company but it gives you at least something since you do need experience,” he told me .

I knew I had to find an internship before graduation. But none of the companies I saw outside stood out to me as anything that would help my future career .

“Where?” I asked after a moment of thinking .

He cleared his throat. “Grimm Defense and Technology. Here is the internship application and a little background on the company.” He sat it on the desk and walked back down to the front of the class .

I ran my eyes over the application as a girl named Sara sat next to me. “Hey, I just spoke to the recruiter for that company you’re holding an application for. Are you going to apply for the internship ?”

I had barely paid any attention to it until then. “I don’t know. I never considered the defense industry.” I shrugged my shoulders .

“Well, I hope you do so I’ll at least know someone there,” she whispered as the lecture had begun. “The recruiter signed me up already .

“I’ll apply then. What department did you get assigned to?” I asked her .

“The IT department, so apply for that one too .”

At the end of class, I turned my internship application in to the professor and headed to my next class. The damn boxes kept coming to my mind for some reason. All throughout that day, they kept popping into my head so I made a decision to end the curiosity and open them all when I got home .

When I got home that afternoon, I put a frozen TV dinner in the oven and changed into a pair of pajama pants and a T-shirt. After I pulled all the boxes out the closet, I sat Indian style on the floor in my bedroom and went through the things .

In the first box was what looked to be crotchless panties and a matching bra set with a note, ‘You belong to me. So I’ll wait, Natasha, until you make the move. But every ignored letter will result in a punishment.’ I balled the letter up then tossed it into the trashcan .

By the time I finished opening the boxes and finding naughty pieces of near nothings, I was wanting him in the worst way with an empty bottle of wine next to me and my dinner burning in the oven .

After taking care of the ruined dinner, I made a decision. I was done holding out on the man. I felt an urge to feel his hands on my body again. I’m sure it was the wine and lack of food that had me so ready to get back to him. I knew there would be punishments for how I had ignored him .

But that brand was still on my shoulder. That ink must’ve had henna in it or something because it never washed off. I looked at it every night when I got out of the shower and something inside of me didn’t care if he spanked me, I could let that happen. I needed to feel him again .

I looked through my closet for something kinky to wear. I had a red bandage dress and I added a pair of black heels. Under that, I put on a nude bra and the crotchless pantie set he’d sent me .

I put on smoky eye makeup and candy apple lip stain with a Venetian mask, he’d put in one of the boxes too. I straightened my hair until it was bone straight .

When I was all put together, I grabbed my keys. I was heading to the BBC warehouse. I knew he would be there. It was Friday after all. The same night I first met him .

I was going back to him, ready to accept my punishment and him. I had no idea what I was getting myself into .

The Bond Part Two

N ATASHA

My adrenaline was rushing as I sat in my car, outside of the building I was pretty sure, my man, Bill was inside of. The parking lot was full of expensive cars, it was Friday night and the bad boy billionaires were on the prowl .

Gathering my courage, I went to the door and knocked three times. The same guy opened the little door and he peeked out at me. “BBC entertainment,” I said .

“Greenwell.” He smiled and opened the door, giving me a different stamp this time. I walked down the same dark dank stairwell to the red door and knocked four times in the top corners. The door opened, surprising me. There was a different woman there that time. “BBC sex.” I gave her the code .

She smiled lightly and checked the stamp on my hand then gestured for me to go inside without a word said between us .

I walked through the room as eyes peered at me from both the women and the men. But my focus was on finding Bill. He wasn’t at the poker table or any game table for that matter .

I walked toward the hall that the rooms were down, opposite the bathrooms. The first room was empty as I opened the unlocked door .

Then the second door was also unlocked and I found two men and a woman inside of that one. The woman was being mounted by one of the masked men while the other watched. I shut that door in a hurry and opened the third door .

My heart stopped as my eyes ran over his muscled body. I could smell his distinct scent from where I stood, quiet as a church mouse .

There he stood in front of a woman who was spread eagle on the bed. His back was to the door. Both of them were oblivious to my presence as loud music filled the room .

My heart thumped as I felt a small twinge of jealousy nagging at me. But I quickly let that escape me as I watched intently as he toyed with the blindfolded woman. I closed the door behind me, silently and leaned up against the dark wall, watching them .

His sweaty upper body glistened in the red lighting. His black pants were on but he wore no shirt or shoes. His face was surely covered by a mask as I could see the string from it running around the back of his dark head .

His hand raised and I saw a small whip in it. It came down on her soft mound and her entire body quivered with the lash. My legs fell slightly apart as I yearned for it to be me he was punishing .

He picked her up and turned her over, pressing her body to lie back down, flat on the bed. Leaning over her, he kissed down her spine as he placed his fingers inside her. “Are you ready for me?” he asked her .

I heard her moan and he took that as a yes. When he turned to put the whip down on a small table, our eyes met. He was surprised to see me at first but then a sense of anger filled his mask covered eyes. I’m guessing he didn’t like to be watched .

“What are you doing here?” he asked with a hushed tone as he came to me .

My eyes shifted as I took my mask off. “I wanted to see you .”

He stepped closer to me. His hands ran up and down my arms. I moaned in his ear as I flicked my tongue at his neck. Yet he stood still as a statue, only his hands kept moving .

I could tell he wanted me as he stood in front of me, his breaths were slow and steady. “Why now? I’m in the middle of something.” He eyed me and I knew he was looking for something. Jealousy perhaps, or maybe an offer to join them .

The truth was, I did feel jealous of that woman who was lying still, waiting for him on that bed. So I did what any jealous woman would do. I baited him. “Maybe next time then.” I grabbed my mask and turned toward the door .

He grabbed my wrists, swinging me around until my back was against the wall. Inhaling my scent like a bloodhound, he held my body between his and the wall, nearly crushing me .

I was throbbing for his penetration but he took his time with me. Licking the side of my neck as one of his hands grabbed my breast. “I’ve missed you, Bill.” The words slipped out even though I knew that was grounds for punishment. And I knew I had some coming for ignoring him for two weeks already .

But he only pulled his body back and looked into my eyes. “I’ve missed you, Natasha .”

He kissed me passionately, like he had a purpose. One I think even he knew was breaking the rules. I moaned softly as his hands roamed my body and his tongue found my breast as he pushed my dress down .

“You have it on?” he looked at me with desire and a bit of surprise as he fondled my breast through the nude bra. The bra had a place sewn into it to put something small in it. I had placed a spare key to our dorm suite in it to give to him .

“Yes, it was the best gift out of all of them,” I said as I showed him the key that was in my bra .

“You have to go, Natasha,” he said, taking the key away from me. “I have things that need tending to .”

He turned away from me as I watched him place that key in his pocket. He went back to the woman and ran his hands over her plump ass. With one hard smack, she seemed ready for him again and my stomach turned .

He was leaving me in a sexual rage. He didn’t look back and I quietly went to the door, leaving him and that woman, who I noticed did not wear his brand on her body, to the elements of the room .

I went home in an annoyed mood. Why had I inflicted that on myself? I shouldn’t have just shown up. I knew what kind of a man he was after all. He wasn’t my boyfriend. I didn’t catch him cheating on me. But it hurt like that just the same .

Once again I had been shamed by his coldness, jolting me back to the reality of his unrelenting dominance. What he did was part of my punishment for ignoring him. Of that I was certain. What I was uncertain about was if he was done with me .

NICHOLAI

I was no longer into Amber as much as I was before Natasha showed up. Amber was a little upset when I told her to leave without any explanation. But if I wasn’t into the woman or the situation any longer, I couldn’t and wouldn’t force myself .

As bad as I wanted to fuck, I could only think about Natasha and the red dress that hugged her curves. I dressed and went out to find she had left the club entirely. I didn’t mean for her to leave the club .

She’d caught me off guard. The way I reacted to seeing her wasn’t a thing I had ever done before. I had to fight myself not to run to her and take her in my arms and kiss her, for God’s sake !

I wanted to throw her ass on that bed and take her the way I’d fantasized about the last couple of weeks while she'd ignored me. And I suppose it was her treatment of me that had me the most bewildered about how I felt .

I fingered the key in my pocket as I drank from the glass filled with straight whisky. The night had been dampened. My libido was raging but only for her .

Should I go to her place and make things right? Or should I leave her alone to think about what she’d done to me ?

She would think I was fucking the woman she’d caught me with. I was sure of that. And I was happy about that. Had she not ignored me, it would’ve been her on that bed. I felt she deserved that to reside in her that I am not a man who will wait for a woman’s attention .

Better for her to realize that right away. But there was a spark of jealousy in her eyes that was mixed with pain. That’s what hit me. That’s what made me think about saying things I’d never said to any woman .

My mind was a blur of things I wanted to tell her. I wanted to ask her so many questions about why she’d shut me out of the way as she had done .

Had I not given her presents to let her know I was thinking of her and wanted her? Had I not sent her text after text, explaining she belonged to me and she was making things hard for us both by refusing to even speak with me over the phone ?

I had done all I could to let her know she needed to stop being stubborn and come to me. She needed to accept her punishment and we could move on. I let her know those things each and every day. Yet she decided to show up at the club instead of accepting my calls or even texting me to say she was sorry and wanted to meet me to apologize .

And she saw what I’d do when she was unavailable to me. After all, it’s a normal thing for a man, who is not committed to any one woman, to do .

The key in my hand had me thinking of doing a very stupid thing. I could not go to her. That’s weak and I was anything but that .

But she may have thought my branding of her meant we were in a committed relationship or something like that. Her eyes told me she was naïve in many ways. I knew she was unaware of what her presence at our club meant. Could I have been wrong in assuming she was also unaware of my commitment to her ?

Did I have a commitment to her ?

I had branded women before. It merely meant they belonged to me, not that I belonged to them. And all of them knew that. They understood where they stood with me. It was clear, cut and dry .

Natasha didn’t know how those things worked. Not at all. And I had taken her, so it was my job to teach her how things worked in my world .

I let the key go and pulled my hand out of my pocket. She would have to endure me ignoring her for a week. She would need to see exactly how that felt. Then, when she came to work for me, I would be able to see her again. With a renewed slate. One where she had been taught not to play with me .

I was not a man who allowed his emotions to be toyed with !

NATASHA

My nude heels clicked against the tiled floor as I walked into the building of Grimm Defense & Technology for my interview. Wearing a rather smart outfit of a beige dress that went to just above my knees, I had my makeup on minimally and my hair in a bun. My reading glasses were on as I was sure there would be paperwork to read and sign .

I had read up on the company to ready myself for what I was told were grueling questions. So prepared I came as I desperately needed an internship. And since my classmate was going to be there too, I envisioned things going well for me with that company .

The tile gave way, as I entered the lobby, to marble floors and a grand chandelier hung above a huge cherry wood desk, making up the main focal point of the large room. I saw a beautiful brunette smiling as I approached .

“Good morning,” I said with a smile .

“Good morning. What can I help you with?” she asked .

A sudden bout of nerves had me clearing my throat. “I’m here for my interview with Mr. Nicholai Grimm .”

She looked down at a clipboard on the right side of her desk. “Do you have a confirmation number for me ?”

I nodded and reached into my purse, pulling out a card with the number on it. “052293 .”

“Thank you, Miss Greenwell. Take the elevator to floor 38 and his receptionist’s desk is to the right,” she said then gave me a wink. “Good luck, the boss isn’t an easy man. Stay absolutely professional at all times. And if you’d like a bit of advice to help you gain the job, show him tremendous respect. It goes a long way with him .”

I felt my nerves kick into high gear as I smiled a thank you at her and made my way to the elevator. I could just imagine the old fart who would be interviewing me .

He would probably grill me with questions that he'd forget the answers to. But I had to keep a brave face and roll with the punches as my need for the internship overshadowed my jitters .

The elevator carried me up as butterflies fluttered around my insides. The elevator stopped on the third floor and I watched as the doors opened and a gorgeous man with a clean-shaven face and dark brown hair entered. He smiled at me as his eyes veered to my apparent exposed cleavage as my dress had ridden a bit low. I pulled it up as I felt embarrassed by the way he was looking at me .

We never spoke as I only wanted to be off the elevator as my butterflies were turning into creatures resembling giant birds rather than dainty butterflies. And the way his tall frame with bulky muscles filled the space on the other side of the elevator made me feel small and helpless, had me keeping my eyes on the floor in front of me as I attempted to steady my nerves .

As the doors slid open, I walked out, the man followed behind me. He was a bit too close, in my personal space, making me feel even more nervous than I was in the first place .

I lost him as I walked up to the desk and he went elsewhere. Recognizing the receptionist as the recruiter who was at my school, I smiled. “Hello, I’m Natasha Greenwell here to see Mr. Nicholai Grimm .”

“Right this way.” She stood to usher me to his office. I followed behind as my palms became sweaty. I took in a few deep breaths as she knocked on the cherry wood double doors. Without an answer, she opened it, stepping to the side. “You may enter,” she said before turning around .

I walked inside, then the large doors closed behind me. It felt like I was overheating from the inside out as anxiety was overloading my system. Making my way through the entry room that led to the office on the other side, I could see the panoramic view of the city .

It was breathtaking as I walked into an empty office with a large desk planted in the middle of it. All the way over to the floor to ceiling windows I went. My nerves began falling away with how gorgeous the sight out of those windows were to me. My breathing steadied and my palms stopped sweating as I gazed out of those windows. My eyes filled with the beauty of the city and the miles of tall buildings. I had been in tall buildings but never one with this kind of view .

“Natasha.” I heard a familiar voice behind me, pulling me out of my daze .

I turned to find the man from the elevator. His voice was very familiar. His body was too, and so was his hair and eyes .

It was Bill !

NICHOLAI

I watched as she stood with her mouth gaping open as that was the first time she had ever seen me without a mask. Her succulent lips made my dick thump in my slacks as I could imagine them wrapped around it .

“Natasha,” I called to her as I closed the space between us. Her eyes shifted around as she cleared her throat .

“I…I apologize,” she said in a hushed tone .

“Look at me, Natasha.” I lifted her chin, gently rubbing my thumb across her smooth plump lips .

“Am I here for an interview or to be worked over again and left in a sexual rage?” she asked with a sassy sexy tone .

I stepped back and returned my hands to my pockets as her eyes continued to shift around the room. “Actually, you were hired before you even stepped foot into this building. So to answer your question, no you’re not here for an interview. But there is a rule that I will not in any way bend on.” I looked at her to see if I had her undivided attention .

“And that is.” Her eyes focused on me .

“There will be no personal relationships amongst your counterparts. Understood?” I asked .

Her face was one of confusion and uncertainty, “Is that all Bil…Nicholai. What do I even call you?” she asked, flustered .

“While we’re here, I prefer Nicholai. While in private…Master.” I had a sly grin on my face as she had a surprised look in her eyes .

“Master,” she asked, puzzled .

“Yes.” I nodded my head, curtly .

“But you just said no personal relationships and I’m sure that includes you, Nicholai.” She gave me a challenging look .

“Natasha, you still wear my brand on your body, we both know what that means. So, it surely excludes our tryst.” My eyes roamed over her body, landing on her beautiful legs in a short, above the knee, beige dress. The top of it hung at the crease of her tits with her pretty little mole peeking out .

“I’m uncomfortable with this situation right here.” She pointed to the two of us .

I was unmoved by whatever she wasn’t comfortable with. She belonged to me as of that night .

She was who I wanted and I had her right there. She was naïve and trusting. No matter the battle with my immoral soul and malicious attitude. I needed some innocence and she had it. Whether greedy or otherwise I had to have my way with whom I desired. No matter what !

“I know that you haven’t found one of those old insidious men to void the agreement,” I said evenly .

I knew she hadn’t even attempted to void the agreement. She fumbled with her fingers when she got nervous.“No, I haven’t because I’m sure a man like yourself will only play with a girl like me until the next beauty comes along. So I’d rather get it done and over with and we can both go back to our lives as we knew them,” she said with an annoyed tone .

I circled around her and stood, staring out the picture window at the view of the city. “You have no idea what the future holds. But I’m sure you will soon .”

There was more to me than met the eye. She couldn’t tell from my expensive attire and surroundings how jaded I was. Whatever hunger I had for her was a part of my everyday life since the day I became CEO. She just so happened to be my next casualty .

“Can I go now?” she asked, obviously agitated .

But I couldn’t blame her for the perception she had of me and I wouldn’t dare hold it against her. Although it was my world, I still had some empathy to the women I possessed .

I turned on my heels and walked over to her. There was no space between us. I could smell the scent of her shampoo and feel the heat radiate from her .

“Goodbye,” she said, backing away, heading for the door .

Just watching her walk away was alluring and the seductive clicking of her heels gave an image of me fucking her with them in the air. Her body was beautiful and her sex was beyond comparison .

I had to have her !

“Natasha,” I called out to her. “Before you go, you must sign this bond.” I went over to the desk to retrieve it .

The thing that would really hold her to me for as long as I wanted her. Our bond !

NATASHA

My feet couldn’t get me out fast enough. There he stood with a condescending and cocky attitude. I knew that I had agreed to everything, but to be reminded every time was a little redundant and juvenile .

As bad as I wanted to say that I didn’t want to be near him, it was a lie. And telling myself that was just as immature as his controlling persona on the situation .

I’m sure I wasn’t his first or only and I damn sure knew I wasn’t going to be his last. I just felt as though I should’ve been a bit smarter than to get caught up with someone like him .

He was rich and powerful in every aspect of his life. And I just didn’t fit into any of it. He was way out of my league. Besides the sex, I knew he wanted nothing else from me .

“Natasha,” he called after me. My feet halted at just the sound of his commanding voice which sent waves to my core. I could feel the throbbing inside me as I wanted him to bend me over and give me the punishment that was due. I shut my eyes tight to rid my mind of the erotic thoughts. I turned around, slowly, cursing myself for not making it out of there fast enough .

“Before you leave, I need you to sign a bond.” He held out a clipboard and pen .

My head snapped up to look at him. “What is this?” I asked, skeptical about this so- called bond .

“It’s a bond for us,” he said taking out what looked like a dress box. My heart skipped a few beats as if it wasn’t already hard enough to control my breathing. “You know what? How about you meet me for dinner tonight.” He snatched the box back .

I stood there contemplating whether or not I was going to dinner with him. Of course, I wasn’t. I didn’t want to end up fighting in his sheets, continuously pressing the envelope on the thing. His voice had my head snapping up again. “It wasn’t a question so no need for an answer.” He had this cold look in his eyes and a tone that sent chills down my spine. I felt a little cheated as his demeanor had changed in all of five seconds .

Reluctantly, I just nodded and turned back around to head to the door, ready to leave .

As I got onto the elevator I felt my heart race almost out of my chest and anger filled me. I felt like he should have right then and there bent me over and just done what the agreement was about. Instead, he taunted me with his abrasive mood swings as if I really was just an agreement .

No, I didn’t want to be more than that, I didn’t even want to be that for him. At least that’s how I felt in that moment, as if the entire thing was a mistake .

Yet, I was already committed, already drawn into something that relied on elastic skin and a frozen heart. We were two tormented souls who ended up colliding and fate would have its way sooner or later .

Once at home, I sat in my room, waiting for absolutely nothing. My mind was at a standstill and homework needed to be done. But I was in no mood at all to sit there and dig deep into my books .

So I crawled up in the bed and wrapped myself in my sheets for a nap. Nicholai or Bill, whatever the hell he wanted to be called, had seriously taken a toll on me .

My mind was reeling with what working for him really meant. Was I to see to his sexual needs at the office or would working there actually teach me things that would benefit me in my career that would come later ?

That is what an internship is for. To teach one about the future. Maybe he was teaching me things I could take into the future. Knowledge about men, sex, pain, anguish .

I had a feeling I should just not ever go back to that building. I should just leave him completely alone .

But why did merely thinking that make my insides ache? I had it bad for the man and I had no idea why that was. He was arrogant, egotistical, and even mean. Why would I have feelings for him ?

And he wanted me all to himself for no other reason than to dominate me. He had no intentions of ever making me anything more to him than essentially, his sex slave .

And I was letting him do that too. I was allowing it all to happen. I struggled to understand myself as I tried to make myself believe I could actually forget about the man .

The tall, handsome man with a body women dream of running their hands over. The man who was taking more from me than I had ever allowed or thought I ever would allow. What was happening to me ?

Was I bewitched? Did Nicholai Grimm have some deal with the devil to possess any woman he decided to? Was evil so deep seeded in the man that he could send it out to grapple onto another human being and drag me into him ?

I had no idea why I was going to keep things going with Nicholai, but I was. I could’ve lied to myself that I could stay away. That I didn’t care. But I did care. I was starting to care a lot and I wanted to know things about the man .

I wanted to know why he was the way he was. Closed off, emotionless, and cold. He couldn’t have always been that way. There had to be a sweet kid in him somewhere .

Maybe, if I treated him in the right way, that innocent boy would come back out. Maybe I could save Nicholai Grimm from himself .

With a laugh, I said out loud, “Yeah, and maybe I can snap my fingers and make a double cheeseburger appear out of thin air too !”

I was a fool, a terrible fool, with no idea of what I was doing. But I would soon find out. And what I’d find I’d do for the man, might destroy us both .

N ICHOLAI

I sat at my desk, waiting for my lawyer to come up so we could talk about the FBI lurking around. As usual, my mind was lingering on Natasha. I had told her a little white lie about the branding. She could’ve denied the 24-hour request and the agreement that first night .

Her ignorance to the entire agreement was my motive to push it further. This would be the night for our real agreement and then the fun would begin .

Jen knocked on the door to inform me my lawyer had arrived. The door opened and Jonathan Billard, my lawyer, strode into my office. “Nicholai.” He smiled, opening his arms wide for an embrace .

I stood to greet him with a warm hug and handshake. “Billard, take a seat.” I gestured for him to sit .

“So, what’s going on Nicholai?” he asked, setting his briefcase down on the seat next to him .

I ran my hands down my face, feeling a bit defeated. It always felt like that when the FBI was anywhere near me. “We have a problem.” I turned to him. His expression turned serious as he stared at me, waiting for me to elaborate. “The FBI has been nosing around at the warehouse. I’m unsure of what they’re looking for, but I don’t need them spooking my employees and asking questions. I can’t have this bullshit right now! Not with my father crawling up my ass about this account .”

He let out an exaggerated sigh. “Listen, Nicholai, I don’t need you getting hotheaded right now. We have been through this a few times already. When it comes to the government, they’re always snooping around to find dirt. As long as you are doing everything by the book then we’re fine. Is there anything I need to worry about?” he asked, giving me that fatherly look .

“No, nothing’s changed,” I said leaning on the corner of the desk .

He nodded in approval. “Then there is nothing to worry about. They should be out of your hair soon, so just relax and continue with business as you always do.” He stood to leave .

“I will. Thanks, Billard.” I gave him another handshake then walked him to the door .

Once again, I was in my office alone. In silence, feeling uneasy and angry. I hated those cowards. They were always up my ass about something and it was starting to piss me off. The only thing I needed at that time was an outlet. In due time I would have exactly that. I went to the small wet-bar in the corner of my office and grabbed a shot of bourbon .

My anger was getting the best of me and it was getting harder and harder to sustain self-control. I didn’t know how long it would last until I would lose it all. In times like that, I would always make a phone call, have a woman sent up and ease my tension, using her body .

With Natasha in my head, I could think of no one I wanted to come help me but her. And I knew she wouldn’t come to me. She wouldn’t come in silence, bend over my desk and let me relieve this anger, using her, then telling her to go .

Not Natasha !

She’d have to argue with me first, then I’d grow even angrier. I’d have to seduce her instead of merely ordering her. That’s exactly why I needed her to sign the damn bond and start learning what it was I needed from her .

Not her sassy mouth, or her tenacious attitude. I just needed her sexy ass and perfect body to take me to another place for a little while. Ease my tensions and allow me to explode into her, with no arguments .

And I hoped very soon that would be a thing she understood and she'd learn to fit in where I needed her to. With the internship, her office would be connected to mine so I could call her in whenever I needed her expert advice .

I would only accept this advice in the form of sex. No words, no ideas. Just her body, letting my body do to it whatever the hell it took to make the anger go away for a while .

My blood boiled too easily from what my father told me. He told me all the time I had little self-control and let my anger rule me too often. As if he was anywhere near perfect !

My father was so far from perfect. Yet he felt no shame in letting me know I was not the man he’d hoped I’d be. My mother’s genes were to blame, he’d tell me .

He actually told me, more than once, that he wished he’d used a condom to fuck my mother. Then he’d have been rid of her after only a few months .

It was she who took the blame for messing up her birth control practices. She claimed to have taken her pills like clockwork, but she managed to get knocked-up anyway. According to the practices of the BBC, if that happens between a member and one of his slaves, he has to take that responsibility if he’s to stay in good standing with the club .

It is the man’s duty to make sure all precautions are being taken in the birth control department. So my father married my pregnant mother and never let her forget that was the only reason he made her his wife .

Becoming his wife meant life changed for her, drastically. No more parties at the club. She had to stay at home. Her role as his sex slave was over. Now she was his wife, and and as such, that meant more respect had to be shown to her .

It was an act for my father. He did not respect women. He looked at them as necessities who fulfill the role of helping men ease their tensions so they can go on to make better business decisions .

Everything led back to business in that man’s eyes. Even children. I was groomed from the very beginning to be a major part of his company. I was sent to the best schools. I had the best tutors in all subjects, including sexual education .

I learned from the best how to make two bodies work together to create the most satisfaction for both people. I also learned to keep emotions out of it. Sex is sex. Love is love. When the two combine, power is lost .

Intentions of losing my power were far from my mind at that time. Lust filled me for Natasha. That was only because her body made mine climax harder than anyone else’s ever had .

Her mere presence stirred a need in me I’d never experienced before. Our bond would be purely sexual. No emotions would be involved. Not if I had anything to do with it !

NATASHA

Deep in sleep, I could feel the vibration of my phone underneath me. I lifted my head up, groggily, blowing out a deep breath as I looked to see who was interrupting my sleep .

It was an unknown number, so I pressed the ignore button. But the asshole on the other end didn’t give a flying rat’s ass about my rest as the phone rang again .

“Hello,” I yelled into the phone, annoyed. I was not a happy camper when it came to my sleep being interrupted .

“That is no way to talk to your master, now is it, Natasha.” His low husky tone gave me pause. My heart fluttered at just the sound of his voice. “Are you there?” he asked .

I swallowed, slowly. “Yes, I’m here,” I said softly. “I didn’t know it was you calling. I wouldn’t have yelled. I am sorry about that, Nic.” Then I freaked that I had called him something he hadn’t told me too and waited to get told not to ever call him that again .

“Nic?” he said with an odd sound to his deep voice. “Okay, I’ll allow that. Dinner is at 8 so you have an hour before my driver picks you up. Be prompt, I don’t like to wait.” And then he just hung up. No, goodbye. No, I miss you. Nothing sweet at all !

“And fuck you too,” I said as the phone was still up to my ear as I sat dumbfounded by his abrupt rudeness. He was giving me whiplash with the constant change in his mood .

I mean I knew rich people had attitudes out of this world but damn, he took the whole damn cake !

I had never been around someone with such an absurd manner. Maybe his parents didn’t raise his bratty ass right on how to treat people. But I wasn’t in the profession of teaching an old dog new tricks. Not that Nicholai Grimm was old in the least .

He was young. One of the youngest billionaires at the BBC. There were a few others but most were old as salt .

It was his demeanor that made him seem older than he was. He had a way about him as if he’d been groomed by another old asshole. His father came to mind .

I had to wonder about his life. The man wanted no type of a real relationship. He liked sex and sex only. Women obviously were put on this earth to serve one purpose in his narrowed vision. Make men happy. Poof! End of subject !

And there I was, climbing my tired ass out of my comfy little bed to climb into a shower to go eat with this pompous ass. And for what reason did I have to jump for him ?

None !

Absolutely nothing was making me do any of it. The internship paid so little, it amounted to a hill of beans. It was the experience you grew rich from, not actual paper money. He’d yet to buy me anything more than naughty things. I had no jewels, no cash in my bra the way Dani said I would .

A pat on the ass, a hundred in your bra, was her lie to get me to go with her to that damn club. BBC shouldn’t be the code for anything to get into that place. It should be BDSM and plenty of it .

It was upscale, that was for sure. But it still had all the makings of the shadiest clubs where people practiced that stuff. That stuff that I let him do to me. I let him shackle my ass. I let him spank my ass. And I suppose I let him brand me .

My foggy memory of that happening kind of rekindled a memory of him slapping that on me without asking me a damn thing !

Yet there I was, shampooing my hair and shaving my body all up, in hopes he would feed me then fuck me into oblivion. I found myself wondering if that was how whores felt .

Had I been turned into a whore, merely by the man’s emotionless fucking? Had I become a woman I would think so little of? And would I continue down that path ?

I knew that road was not for me. I knew it all along. But the promise of getting to feel him slam into me with that raw power he had was something I couldn’t stop wanting. Fuck, I needed it !

After the shower, I got out and did very little to myself. I figured we’d probably eat, fuck like animals then he’d send me home in his car. Why get too fancy ?

I had pulled on a robe and was about to start the process of drying my hair when the doorbell rang. With frustration, I slapped the wall in anger. “I’m coming,” I yelled as the doorbell sounded once again .

If he was there already, I was going to give him what for. That man was all about being punctual. If that was him ringing my bell, he was early .

Passing through my bedroom I looked outside to see a black Tahoe parked at the curb. I checked the time on the clock on the bedside table and it read 7:15. He was early, very early !

As I looked through the peephole, Dani’s bedroom door swung open. “It’s for me, Tasha.” She rushed to the door trying to zip her red cocktail dress. “Can you zip me?” She stopped in front of me. “Hold on please,” she yelled at the person on the other side of the door .

“Where are you going?” I asked .

“I have another party tonight so I won’t be in until late. Don’t wait up for me.” She turned around with a red lipstick stained smile. “I can’t believe you got branded your first night there and I can’t find a rich man to keep me after three years of going to these things .”

“Yeah, lucky me,” I said with words laced with heavy sarcasm. “ Have fun .”

After returning to my bedroom, I went to my closet to find a nice dress to wear that night. My options were limited but I had no time to rummage through my clothes to find something appropriate. Since Dani was gone, I went to her room and found a nice gold colored cocktail dress that had a deep plunge in the back. It hugged my curves snugly, which I loved .

Not able to wear a bra with the dress, I also opted out of wearing panties since the dress was too tight and you would see the lines. Although I hated thongs, I knew I would have to compromise and buy a few pairs. If I was going to be going to naughty parties with Nic, it would become a necessity .

After primping for a while, I pulled my hair up in spiral curls, letting them fall down the left side of my shoulder, my brand was exposed. There wasn’t a need for much makeup except for some gold and black eyeshadow. I applied some lip gloss to give my plump lips a nicer look .

I put on a pair of gold Zanotti heels Dani had bought me for my birthday last year. My look was complete with a gold clutch which held just my phone, identification, and credit card just in case. Nic had a tendency of pissing me off, if need be, I would take a taxi home .

It was 8 o’clock sharp when my phone vibrated, I knew it was him. “Hello,” I said into the phone .

“The car awaits you,” he said, hanging up on me, yet again. Taking a few deep breaths, I walked out to find a black Range Rover waiting with a driver at the back door .

“Good evening, Ms. Greenwell.” The driver gave me a smile as he opened my door .

I nodded. “Thank you.” Then got into the truck to find it empty. I shook my head in utter disbelief that he didn’t have the decency to come get me himself. “So rude,” I huffed .

Instead of being a party pooper, I left well enough alone and just summed it up to this being who he was. The ride was a long one as he took me out of the city, to Manhattan .

We stopped at a building that had an immaculate lawn and grand fountain. I looked in awe as the architecture was marvelous. I had never dreamt of standing outside of such a building, let alone going into it .

The door soon opened and the driver handed me a mask and a note. “You must read the note and follow the instructions,” he said, reaching out for my hand. He tied the mask over my eyes for me, putting me back in a position of anonymity, I felt was no longer necessary .

As I walked into the lobby, there was a bellhop and a receptionist who was dressed in a pantsuit with her brown hair pulled nicely into a tight bun. I opened the note. ‘Go to the counter and let Mary know you are here to see me .’

I crumpled the note up and did as instructed and went to the desk. “Good evening, Mary. I’m here to see Nicholai.” I gave her a pleasant smile but felt stupid with the mask on .

“Ms. Greenwell, a pleasure. You must follow the instructions. The elevator is to your left.” She handed me another note .

“Thank you.” I walked in the direction of the elevators .

Once I pressed the button, I could see the elevator through the double panes of glass. I opened the note. ‘Take the elevator to floor 32, knock three times .’

I chuckled as I thought about the ridiculous secret knocking. It was just like the party. I was just glad there wasn’t any password or I’d fail, miserably .

I stepped into the elevator and rode it to the 32nd floor, as instructed. “Natasha, you better be on your best behavior.” I tried giving myself a pep talk. I knew when I was around him there was no self-control, at least not on my part .

The doors opened to a small hall with just one door on the entire floor. I walked over to it and knocked three times as the note said to. I fumbled with my fingers as I shifted my weight from one hip to the other .

Before the door opened, I took a small breath to knock the edge off. It opened swiftly by who I guessed was his personal doorman. “Ms. Greenwell, Mr. Grimm awaits you.” He gave me a smile, stepping aside to let me in .

I was in a trance as I saw the décor of his home. It was feminine yet it had a bachelor feel to it. I couldn’t see the hard-edged man living in such a place .

Who was Nicholai Grimm, really ?

N ICHOLAI

I loved to see her face and how her eyes lit up when she was at a loss for words. She hadn’t seen me when she walked in as her attention was on the décor .

I stood, gazing out the window when she arrived. “Would you like a drink,” I asked her as I took a sip of my bourbon .

She searched around for me, trying to see what direction my voice was coming from until her eyes fell on me. It was becoming more obvious to me, she needed more than just reading glasses .

I walked over to meet her as she came further into the room. “A glass of wine would be great. Thank you,” she said with a soft tone to her sweet voice .

So much was sweet about Natasha. She wore a gold dress that wasn’t her style at all. She was pulling it off, don’t get me wrong, but she looked like a woman who would be more at home in elegant clothing. I made a mental note to purchase her some attire that was more fitting for her .

“You can have a seat,” I said as I made my way to the wine chiller at the full bar in the main living area .

She was looking around more as I went to the bar. When I walked back toward her with her glass of wine in hand, she took a seat on the white leather love seat. Right in the center of it, which I found a little amusing .

“Thank you, your house is very nice. I would’ve expected something with a bit of a harder edge to it, like yourself. You know, black leather, perhaps a set of shackles in that corner over there,” she said with a grin and a wink then took a sip of the very expensive wine .

I untied her mask, taking it off and placing it on her lap. “Well, I’m not into everything everyone else is. But you will soon see that.” I turned on my heels to go back and get the box that held the papers that would cement our deal. “I wanted to see you for both business and pleasure tonight. We have a bond agreement that needs to be signed and I will run over the rules. Understood ?”

I watched her as she seemed to be weighing things up in her mind. I was unsure if she was going to sign the papers I'd had the BBC draw up for us .

The way it made me feel off kilter was startling to me. I had never cared if any one of the subs in the past signed or not. I could easily find another who would .

Her demeanor was off-putting and had me nearly wringing my damn hands with a nervousness, the likes I had never known .

I was standing there, with the damn box in one hand and a pen in the other and I didn’t know what the hell to say or what I’d do if she simply refused. That was not like me. Not like me at all !

NATASHA

I contemplated a bit before answering because I was unsure of what he was asking of me. “When you say bond agreement and rules, what exactly do you mean? Is it to control my consumption of calories, how I dress, how I style my hair, down to the color of underwear you will allow. Or will you appear out of nowhere to stalk me and say I’ve had too many drinks? What does that really mean?” I chuckled at the thought of him doing such things .

If he wanted to control my life, then this was the end of any agreement he was after. I would never allow a man to tell me how to dress, what to drink, or anything that wasn’t logical .

He cleared his throat, setting his bourbon on the bar that he’d walked back to, swirling his finger around the rim, after placing the box and pen back on the bar. “It has nothing to do with any of that. Nothing in the rules is any aspect of control. At least not in that sense.” He gave me an annoyed look. “Come with me.” He held out his hand .

I sat my own glass down on a coaster on the dark wood coffee table that looked like one very expensive antique. Then went to him and took his extended hand. I marveled at how it felt when our hands clasped. It sent a sensation through me that was nowhere near sexual. It was comforting and very natural. I envisioned holding that hand for years to come, though I knew inside, it would never be that way .

We went into the dining area and he pulled out a chair. “Sit!” he said with a stern tone that did not go with how he was holding my hand or treating me at all .

I took a seat and waited for him as he walked away then reappeared with the box from earlier and this time what looked to be a thick stack of papers .

In my mind, I was already overwhelmed with my homework, now he had paperwork for me to read too. He handed me the papers which had a notebook attached to it, but he kept the box .

I watched as he made his way back to the living room and found him coming back with our drinks. He sat mine next to me and took his down in one gulp before pouring more from a decanter inside of the china cabinet that was filled with an old style set of plates. The man was into antiques, apparently, and that was interesting to me .

He was dressed in a tuxedo. To say he looked handsome is too simple a word. He looked devastating. I knew he had to be going somewhere in that getup and I wondered if I’d be asked to go with him .

“Open up to page seven.” He sat and turned to face me. I opened the packet and went to page seven where the heading said: Master/Slave Bond Agreement .

“Slave?” the word croaked from my throat. I would be no slave and there was no way I would actually call myself one. My eyes tried to take in what my brain had already processed .

“Don’t be afraid of what’s in front of you. This is a bonded agreement between us that we’ve already discussed. But this is to give you some enlightenment as to what I expect. It is a document that is considered to be legal. You must read it, thoroughly. Do not sign it until you do .”

“Why do I need this? It’s a contract.” I asked, still trying to comprehend the crap. “And we’ve discussed so little, Nic. I don’t know if you realize that or not .”

He folded his hands and smiled, slyly. “I’m a man of few words. I told you I had a bond I wanted you to sign. You know I want you or I’d never have branded you. And it’s not a contract. Contract is too complicated of a word to use. That’s why it’s a Bond Agreement. We need this to ensure that neither of us breaks the rules. For both our safety.” He pursed his lips together and paused. When I said nothing, he went on, “Now, turn to the next page.” His voice low and soft was meant to keep me calm, I knew .

After turning to the next page I saw the glint in his eyes as mine looked at the page with more surprise. There were photos of women in leather bonds, blindfolds, and gag balls. I looked in horror as that was some of the things he had done to me already .

The pictures looked intense and brutal. I swallowed hard as my palms felt sweaty just from looking at the photos. “Although contrary to what I’ve already let you do to me, I’m not into any type of abuse like this. This looks sinister.” I pointed to a picture with a woman up in the same contraption I had been in that club. “Is that what I looked like in that thing? That’s horrible!” I continued onto the next page without his permission and there were more photos .

“It’s not abuse,” he said with a quiet tone to his deep voice. “And you looked sexy as hell in that thing, if you want to know the truth. Did it hurt you at all, Natasha? Be honest .”

“It didn’t hurt. But it looks horrible. If this isn’t abuse, then what is it?” I asked, knowing for sure those pictures depicted some type of abuse .

“It’s a form of BDSM and I will go over all the rules to help you understand.” He acted as if that was a normal conversation that normal people had .

I had heard about BDSM and even read a few books where it was a key subject. I was far from interested in anything that kinky. Don’t get me wrong, introducing new things into the bedroom is fine and dandy. But we shared no bedroom. Hell, we barely knew each other to even be bored enough to need more at that point .

He cleared his throat as I was lost in my thoughts. “Now, turn to the next page.” He gestured. I did and came upon a list of rules .

“Rule number one, it is one of the most important rules. Master/Slave shall never inflict physical, mental, and/or emotional harm on the other. This is to help you understand that there is no type of abuse or harm going on,” he said in a concerned manner. But it would take a lot more than his word to convince me. “It’s what we consider the SSC, safe, sane and consensual. There is a handbook that explains that to you in-depth which will also need your signature.” He eyed me, gauging my reaction .

I was still quiet because the information was putting me in a whirlwind and he had just begun with the rules .

“Rule number two, another important rule you must never forget, a Slave is never to have sex or any type of intimacy without the Master's permission .”

My head shot towards him because that meant I had to be monogamous. “Does that mean you can sleep with whoever you please, while I basically live monogamous to you. That sounds a little unfair .”

“I am the Master, Natasha. I can do whatever I want to. You are the slave. You have to do what I tell you to,” he said as if it was an easy concept to understand .

It was supposed to be a game and he wanted me to be loyal to him while he played in the sheets with others, putting me at risk. “I don’t agree and will never agree when my health is involved. I mean you can have sex, intimacy with whoever you please while I submit open and bare to you?” I asked with an annoyed pitch .

“Natasha,” he said my name once again in an attempt to silence me .

I was sitting there, seething at his deep voice and how he was handling me with kid gloves. Sure I knew absolutely nothing compared to him but I wasn’t stupid either .

It seemed as if my concerns meant nothing in the form of fairness or health. “It’s a bond that you must keep to ensure you don’t fall out of agreement just because you find a momentary happiness with another man .”

I was ready to tell him to forget about it all but I liked to give people the benefit of the doubt. He was more concerned about me finding love with another man and that had me thinking he might have more than just a physical want for me .

“Rule number three,” he quipped. “There will be no emotional intimacy connection whatsoever, ever, and if the Slave does seem a bit attached, then the Master will show her her place which includes, but is not limited to, whipping and/or observation of sex with another slave .”

My eyes furrowed at the mention of him being able to have sex with another woman to keep me from getting attached. That summed up all my fears. How was I to keep my emotions at bay? He had to consider my feelings too. It’s not as easy for a woman as it may be for a man .

“That means you would still have to consider my feelings because if not for love then what is it for?” I asked with an unconvinced look on my face .

That was grounds to just walk away from the entirety of the bond or whatever the hell his sick mind wanted. “Love rarely happens, Natasha. That’s why I lay down the ground rules so you will know what I expect. And, yes, at all times I will keep your feelings as a top priority. This rule is just to give you awareness. I’m not saying it would happen but I’m also not saying it wouldn’t. You do understand, don’t you?” He sipped from his glass .

“I understand this will be a game where we play with each other’s bodies and leave our minds out of it.” I scanned over the rules .

“Me more so than you, but yes.” He pointed at the paper. “Rule number 14 is as important as number one, Master/Slave must be discreet at all times. That means absolutely no gossiping to your friends or family about this agreement. We arranged this to protect both of us from any backlash in business and in private .”

I could understand that, since it would be both humiliating and disgusting for anyone to know. “I can totally agree to that one. I don’t care for anyone knowing I’m even contemplating this .”

He frowned a little as he kept his eyes on the paper. “Rule number 22, any broken agreement is subject to discipline/punishment from that of the Master up to the Grand Master of the BBC. That includes lashings, spankings, whippings, and/or legal action .”

“Wait, what, legal action?” I asked in shock .

I would’ve never thought you could take such an agreement to court. This violated rule number 14 in every way possible. If the news outlets got the slightest whiff of Nicholai Grimm, heir to the Grimm family empire, being into BDSM, it would ruin him .

“The next one will explain this, rule number 23, any bond broken could be held in court proceedings of the Lord in Standing, Judge of the BBC. This means that whoever the Lord in Standing of the BBC is, if such an instance should arrive, he will handle any case brought against the Master or the Slave.” He touched my chin to make me look at him. His eyes, though dark as night, looked kind at that moment. “I’m under the same bond as you. Which gives me no special treatment in breaking the rules .”

“So I can bring a claim against you?” I asked as I tapped my chin with the pen in my hand .

He nodded. “If I break any of the agreements you could file a claim with the Grand Master. He will then decide if he will proceed with the claim. In any violation of the rules, I can be fined for a claim if it’s found to be true .”

“Does that happen often?” I asked, as surely the women in those types of agreements get pissed off if they’re treated poorly .

“Not often, no.” He looked away as if he’d maybe been a part of a claim before. “But it does happen .”

I decided not to push him too much about that. “Okay. It is good to know that something can be done if I feel something you do is wrong .”

He squinted as he looked back at the paper. “There are several more rules that I will scan through. Rule number 35, you must commit to drug and disease screenings every quarter. Rule 41, you must obey your Master at all times. That means you will look at me when I’m speaking to you, you will acknowledge me as Master or Sir when we are in private. Rule number 42, you will wear a Chastity belt at all times with no exceptions. And last but not least we have a safe word that we agree upon. Ours is ‘Mercy’ that will let me know that you are either in pain or in some type of distress.” He eyed me seductively. “All the others you will need to read over and make sure you read it carefully .”

I sat, fidgeting in my seat, as he went through the rules. There were so many my head was spinning. “What about rule 49, Slave must wear a noticeable temporary tattoo that signifies who her Master is. A form of clothing must cover it in public unless with her Master .”

“I have the one you put on my shoulder,” I said. “Why would I need another one ?”

“That one will fade soon. You’ll see. One day the water and soap you use will wash it away and there will be nothing to keep other member’s hands off you when that happens,” he told me .

With a shrug, I said, “Who cares? I’m never going to anything like that again, anyway .”

“I bet you find yourself wrong, Natasha. You are not being truthful with yourself. You are very into that kind of thing. You let me have you right away. You let me do what I wanted to you, immediately. You have a sinful side you are only hiding from yourself. I see it. I see it as plain as I see the nose on your gorgeous face.” His lips touched the tip of my nose and it felt sweet .

Sweetness had no place in what he was talking about. He was telling me I was a wanton slut and had just been hiding it. He was telling me that, if his brand was not on me, then he feared I’d go back to that place and find another to do the things he did to me .

And all I could think about when he kissed my nose like that was there was more to him where I was concerned. He liked me. He didn’t want to see me with another man .

“It only lasts about six months and can be covered easily,” he said, reminding me how not permanent it all would be. And my heart ached a bit about that .

“Where does it usually go?” I asked, out of curiosity .

He stood up, loosening his tie. “On the back of your neck. When we are amongst other members, at functions or any events, you will wear your hair above the neckline so it’s visible at all times.” I looked at him without a blink as my mind was a fogged up mess. “You don’t have to decide right now. Besides, we’ll be late.” He looked at his watch to emphasize his point .

I didn’t have a clue about what I was going to do. The information was still registering. This had to be the most absurd situation to be considering. I mean an agreement to be someone’s sex slave was a little extreme and frightening .

Then he was changing gears on me and putting that to the side and taking me somewhere else, it sounded like. I placed the papers in a neat stack and left them on the table. “And where are we going ?”

“I’m taking you to a museum tonight,” he said as he pulled the chair out for me and took my hand, just like a perfect gentleman .

“I see.” I had no want to visit a museum but I was so busy thinking about all the rules and what I should do that I went along with him without saying one word .

But one word was upfront in my mind. Slave !

T he Broken Part Three

N ICHOLAI

I knew that conversation would be the hardest part of making Natasha into what I craved. And I had another trick up my sleeve to help entice her into my slave quarters .

Leading her out of the apartment, I could smell her sweet perfume. The scent was musky and made me stir as I thought about how the rest of her body smelled. She brought out more animal in me than most women did .

It was obvious that I needed to get her consent to get things going with her so I could stop being obsessed over her all the time. She filled my waking thoughts and my nightly dreams .

I was certain once I had used her body in the ways I wanted that I would stop thinking about her constantly. I just had to get her to agree and sign the damn bond. It was a rule with the BBC .

If one was to take things to a personal level, then one had to have a bond signed. If a woman came into our club, she knew what she was in for. If she was not in the club when you did certain things, you needed to protect yourself .

So I really needed her signature on that document before any of the good stuff could happen. I could still fuck her when I wanted, with her consent, of course. But the rough stuff wasn’t a thing my club members thought was smart to do without the signed bond .

One never knew what might happen if the woman simply got mad and started telling your deep dark secrets. The things we did were not commonplace. And in many ways were not accepted by mainstream society .

The goings on of that night had made many a woman, who was sitting on the fence about the bond, cave in. I hoped Natasha would also be smitten by the dramatic flair which the evening would deliver .

We got onto the elevator and she stood in the right corner, trying to keep her focus on everything else but me. “Natasha,” I turned my head in her direction. Her eyes slowly met mine. I saw the fear and the confusion behind her eyes. And my heart stopped for a moment. “I never want you to do something you’re uncomfortable with. If you don’t want this, I can forget about the agreement right here .”

For some reason, I cared about what she wanted more than my own selfish desires, or maybe it was the way her ass sat in that dress. Whatever it was, it wasn’t a thing I’d ever felt before .

“By forgetting about the agreement, do you mean forgetting about me too?” she asked me with sorrowful eyes .

Could I forget about her? I asked myself. Could she be a woman I could forget ?

I’d been away from her for two, what felt like, very long weeks. I thought about her constantly. But without the bond, without the rules, I’d have to let her go .

I nodded and watched her head drop. Then lifted it back up as I held her chin and stroked her cheek with my thumb. “I don’t want to forget about you. You could still have the internship. I’d just have to forego any thoughts of a sexual situation with you .”

The corners of her mouth pulled into a smile. “Do you really consider yourself capable of having me around you and not feeling a sexual pull to me ?”

I felt baited by her words. I was a man who dripped self-discipline. If I set my mind to it, I could get past my obsession with her body. “I’d have to find another woman to fill your sexual shoes. But I could handle myself around you if you decide this isn’t a thing you want to do .”

“I’d have to see you around the office and know you were with someone else?” she asked me .

I nodded. “You hold the power in your hands, not to see that happen.” I took her hands and pulled them up, placing kisses on her palms .

She shuddered with the sensation. “Nic, how long do you see this lasting ?”

“I don’t think in those terms. I think this will last for as long as we want it to. If either of us tires of it then we end the bond. If we’re still enjoying one another in a year or even five then we will leave things like they are,” I told her .

“I’m 23, I know I’m not a spinster by any means but if we kept up our bond for five years, I’d feel the need to start a family by then. What do your rules say about that?” she asked as the elevator stopped .

The doors opened and we walked out without me uttering a single word. She saw my silence was an uncomfortable one and I was startled by the way her hand caressed my cheek as I opened the door to my Range Rover to let her in on the passenger side .

Her touch was soft, soothing, and made a different heat fill me. Lust was all I’d ever felt, that sensation was completely new to me. So I let her in on a bit about myself .

“If you desire a family then we would have to see where we stood at that time. My mother was my father’s slave and when she got pregnant with me, by mistake, he had to marry her. That is one of our rules,” I told her and watched her mouth drop .

“That’s hard to believe .”

“Well, this will make it even harder for you. You see, a man’s wife has to be treated with a lot of respect. You and I would no longer share the physical relationship we will in the confinements of the bond .”

Her eyes danced as she smiled. “Why do you say that with such a sadness, Nic? Married people still have sex .”

“Not the kind I’m talking about,” I said and watched her shudder with a sudden chill .

“You’re frightening me .”

“You should be afraid, a little.” I closed the door, leaving her with an air of fascination. I was trying to seduce her to my ways. I was trying to make her int

N ICHOLAI

I got behind the wheel of my truck and headed to a ritual that would hopefully change her views on how things worked .

“What museum are we going to?” she asked, looking at me. “You’ll see shortly.” I rubbed my thumb up her forearm and watched goose bumps form on her beautiful creamy skin .

That was the best part of the initiation for me then, getting to forget about business and other problems that life throws at you. Whoever said more money means more problems was dead on. Even the FBI found their way somewhere in the mix just to let their presence be known .

The FBI was a source of contention for me and my family. They always had been. I suppose when dealing in the weapons industry, that’s to be expected. But the fuckers were all so cocky and sure if they turned over just the right stone, they’d find a goldmine .

Like burrs under my blanket, the people of the FBI irritated me to no end. There was no real threat as we did all of our business above board. They’d gone through our files with a fine-tooth comb only five years before and found nothing. I didn’t know why they were so determined to go at us again .

Glancing at Natasha, I saw she was keeping her attention on the night lights and the beauty of the city. It seemed the city always looked beautiful at night no matter where you were .

But in the beauty hid the madness and scathing villains, lurking in the crevices of the dark alleys. That is how I saw life. Beauty hid the sinister being who resided within .

Some people were the kind who wore their hearts on their sleeves. You knew everything about them within hours if you spent any amount of time with them. I was part of a world full of people with layer upon layer of thick skin which had been made by troubles and turmoil not many know the likes of .

Most see the rich as spoiled, and while some are, the people who actually work for their money are anything but spoiled. The need for a club like The Billionaire Bad Boy Club, a club for wealthy men of all ages, was seen by the founders. My grandfather was one of them .

I should feel a certain amount of shame for that but I don’t. He and his cohorts searched their souls for how to really get away for a little while from the brutal pressure the business world puts on those who surf the huge waves of cash .

Carnal pleasures have always been at the forefront of all activities that tend to take the mind away from troubles to a place where only two people, and sometimes more, exist. In that space of time, the body decompresses. Letting out steam in excess as you release your inhibitions and increase your chances of not dying from a heart attack due to stress .

One could look at my grandfather and the other men like him as healing men. And with their many dollars, they could buy some fun. Some natural stress relieving medicine. Women !

With that thought in my mind, I looked at the woman in my passenger seat, wondering how the young, impressionable, innocent woman sat naive to the evil which clung to her. I was like a mosquito, silently drinking away her blood, while infecting her with my disease .

I couldn’t imagine the secrets and skeletons she must’ve had in her closet. I knew she had some. The way she could turn into another person told me that much. She was truly naïve but she was anything but innocent. There had to be a dark little thing in her past to make her that way .

All of us who practice this lifestyle have a darkness that haunts us. We face the pain and anguish rather than hide from it. I have no doubt in my mind, my darkness came straight from my family .

You don’t hear the things I’ve heard about myself and my poor mother, from the man who is supposed to be your hero, your keeper, your defender and not grow scars on your soul. I was severely scarred and what was worse, I needed to take a fresh, naïve young woman and contort her to fit my will in an attempt to curb some of that evil appetite I had .

Her darkness was well hidden from herself but it was there and I was going to mine it until it came to the surface. Perhaps once that occurred, I’d be full of what I needed from her and able to move on. It wouldn’t leave her in peace, it would leave her in pieces .

With a sultry stare at my intended victim, we pulled up to the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum, the old Carnegie Mansion. That is where the night would begin and the wonders of the world laid ignorant to the elite’s finest entertainment .

It was yet to hit the air but lust would abound soon. And in that lustful rage, I hoped to gain my prize. My sweet, delectable prize .

Everyone else was just getting there. Some of the richest and most famous people in New York were there .

“Let me put this on for you.” I placed a lace mask on her face. Then I put on my masquerade mask and escorted her into the theater. Her icy-blue eyes darted around, her hand was tight on my arm as she clung to it. Everyone was masked, as usual at anything the BBC did .

A gentleman with shoulder length dirty blonde hair and a tall dark haired woman strolled past us. Natasha leaned in, “ Was that ?”

I stopped her with a finger to her lips. “We never ask that question.” Anonymity was a courtesy and one never stepped on common courtesies .

Upon our arrival, I could see the Lord in Standing, talking with some of the other members. The only other newbie was with Jon X. She looked nervous with sad eyes as she looked upon everyone else .

She and Natasha were the only newbies from what I saw. “Natasha, I’m going to step over there for a bit,” I told her. It was important she learn to converse with other females at those things. With that lifestyle, one could only confer about certain things with others like them. Building confidential friendships was important lest your mind went to a frazzled state. “Try and talk to this young lady here until I come back. Drinks and Hor D’oeurves are being served inside the ballroom.” I took her to the other young lady after she gave me a nod that told me she understood .

As I went amongst the others I watched as she kept her composure and acquainted herself. I felt great pride as I watched her get along well with the other woman. She would make a wonderful slave if she let herself go with the darkness inside her .

“She is gorgeous, Bill,” Jon. X. told me. “What do you think of my new victim ?”

“She looks a little sad,” I had to let him know .

“She’s only sad that I am not near her. She can’t get enough of me,” he said with a growl. “And how’s it going with that vixen you’ve managed to find ?”

“You really don’t want to know that,” I said with a chuckle. “On account, I’d have to lie to improve upon what you’ve just told me about your new find. Mine is a diamond in the rough. She will need tons of polishing but I’m up for the challenge .”

His grimace had my insides jittery for a second. “She’s having to be led into it? Not good. But I saw her before, at the warehouse. I’ve seen her there twice as a matter of fact. She has to be into it if she went there .”

“The first time she was duped by her friend, Daniella Day, into coming. She was told it was a fundraiser and nothing more than that. But a delightful experience in the bathroom told me she has it in her to make a good candidate. The second time she was there, was for me. This is all new to her but she’s not running away, screaming .”

“Like she probably should be,” he added with a foreboding chuckle .

As I watched her from across the room, our eyes locked and she mouthed, ‘ Save me .’

My knees buckled and I couldn’t believe the stab I felt in my heart. She wanted me to save her and I was trying to do anything but that. I was taking her further into the dark underside of the world .

A place where chains hung on the walls next to whips that were used to tame the spirit and kill the rebelliousness inside a person. Not all slaves are women. There are plenty of powerful women who have male slaves. There is no sexism in our society, contrary to popular opinion .

Her eyes still held mine as she wiggled her finger at me and I took a step forward, like some kind of fool. I shook my finger at her then mock-swatted in the air to show her what that kind of tomfoolery would get her if she kept it up .

A smile flowed over her sweet lips and she blew me a kiss. A simple act it was but it made my heart skip a beat. I had to look away, back to my cronies and had no idea, Jon. X. had witnessed our little back and forth .

His shoulder nudged mine as he whispered, “You had better watch out, old boy. That one may sneak up on you .”

“Never,” was my fast reply .

Never !

NATASHA

I watched as Nicholai walked over to the older group of members who were laughing and talking amongst themselves when we walked in .

Everyone was dressed formally, making me feel as if I was dressed a little slutty in the dress I was wearing. I saw another girl there who looked to be just as new as I was. That was precisely who Nic steered me toward. He told me I should talk to her as he was going to speak with the men .

I got the gist of what he was saying even though he wasn’t really saying it, ‘Make friends, be nice, make me proud of you .’

Before walking over to her, I grabbed both of us a drink, hoping my nerves didn’t show as bad as hers were. “Here you go,” I said handing her a blueberry vodka and water mix .

“Thank you,” she said, taking it from my hands almost immediately, then guzzling it down .

“I’m Natasha, “I held my hand out to her .

She chuckled a bit. “Oh! I apologize, I’m Trisha.” She shook my hand. Her palms were clammy. “So are you ready for tonight?” she asked, snatching a glass of champagne from one of the servers who was passing by .

“I’m unsure what I’m ready for right now since I don’t know what’s going on.” I said, honestly .

She gave me a mischievous smile. “It’s a ritual initiation celebration of a newbie. I will have mine in a few weeks.” She smiled widely. It took me by surprise as she was looking like she was on the brink of tears. “When is yours?” she asked excitedly .

I almost choked on my drink. “Excuse me,” I said, wiping the corner of my mouth .

“When is your celebration?” she asked again, confirming that I had heard her right .

“Oh no, I’m not having one of those,” I said, laughing .

“I thought you signed the bond. That’s why you’re here, right?” She gave me a confused look .

I stood there for a moment as I knew there was no way I would even consider being a slave. Looking her in her dark green and very pretty eyes, I said, “No, I didn’t sign the bond as being a slave isn’t my idea of romance and love.” I looked over my shoulder to find Nicholai’s back turned toward me as he laughed at whatever was so funny .

“You’re with Bill, right? I saw you on his arm when you walked in. He’s so handsome. I would think you’d be jumping at the chance to enter into a bond with him. Many of the women who frequent the BBC parties lust over him. He’s young and built like a brick shithouse .”

Her candor was remarkable. “You do talk freely, don’t you? And who is your stud-muffin ?”

“The man yours is talking to,” she pointed out. “He is my master.” Her words sounded light and airy and not like a thing I ever saw myself saying about something like that. “It’s only a paper, Natasha. It’s just so you two can have amazing sex using amazing things to get you each off. What’s the harm in that?” she asked me .

I downed my drink as I saw a waiter coming with a tray full of something else and placed my empty on it then took a fresh one. “The harm, my dear, is the degradation that document holds you to. He will do what he wants to you when he wants to. You will call him master, for the love of God!” I could only shake my head and take another drink of the purple liquid that tasted a hell of a lot like grape Kool -Aid .

“Then why did he bring you here, I wonder?” she pondered out loud. “If you have no desire to fuck like that then why bother with you at all ?”

I looked away as she’d hit a soft spot then she wagged her finger at me and smiled as I said, “It’s not that .”

“Oh! You do like to fuck like that! So what’s the big deal about the paperwork then? Do you have misplaced morals?” She took another drink as if we were having a nice normal conversation as she looked at me over the rim of her glass .

“It’s the other stuff, the controlling stuff that I don’t see eye to eye with. I could have any kind of sex with that man that he’d let me, it’s not the sex at all. I want love though and by the few things he’s said to me, that’s out,” I told her, then took a drink to calm myself down a bit .

“Love makes you weak and stupid. I know all about love. My heart’s been stepped on one too many times. So why not give myself to someone who likes what I like? And you’ll see tonight, you get to have a really dramatic show when you come out as a master and slave. It’s so erotic and sexual. You’ll see. If you’re still around, I hope you come to mine. It’s going to be Egyptian themed. I can’t wait!” she smiled and kind of jumped up and down a bit .

I found myself looking back to see where my man was and I found him looking at me. I mouthed, save me, at him and he gave me this magnificent smile. Then I wiggled my finger at him and he looked as if he was going to come to me then he stopped and acted like he was paddling my ass in the air .

Trisha talking had me turning back to her. “Just think of it as an experience. And you’ll have a friend as a sister slave.” She looked empathetic to my reluctance. Or possibly my pure ignorance of the entire comprehension of that lifestyle. “Don’t over think it and just enjoy the show. That’s all it really is, anyway. All of it is just an act we put on. It’s not all the time, it’s kind of like a hobby. One that’s very fulfilling .”

Until the beatings began, I thought to myself and was about to say out loud. Before I could respond, though, I felt the warmth of his hand on the small of my back. “It’s time for us to take our seats,” he whispered in my ear, tickling the fine hairs on my neck .

He took my hand and we walked through the hall filled with infamous art aligning the walls. I had never been there before due to the fact I never went that far out of the city. Although I loved the arts, I just didn’t think coming this far to see anything like this was worthwhile. But there I was, being proven wrong as it was art I’d only heard of or seen on the Internet and I was adoring it .

We walked into a theater and took our seats. His hand still held mine and when he pulled our hands up and left a kiss on mine as he looked at me, I saw something in those dark eyes looking at me from behind his black mask. It was more than lust and less than love, somewhere in between the two things and I had hoped he’d come over to my side instead of trying to pull me to his .

I looked to see a stage with a cage on it. “What’s that for ?”

His voice came from right behind my ear and it sent a shiver down my spine while simultaneously making me wet, “Shh, my princess, you will soon see. Prepare yourself. It is nothing like you have ever seen in your life .”

I turned to look at him, as him calling me his princess was a sweet thing to say and I was unaware he knew any sweet things to say at all. My smile was lopsided as I leaned over and kissed his cheek which I knew wasn’t a thing a slave did without being told to but I couldn’t help myself. “I can’t wait. Thank you for bringing me here tonight, my sweet prince .”

The lights went out and everyone’s conversations ceased as music began to play. I looked over at Nicholai who had an amused look on his face as I sat, watching the stage in excited anticipation of what was about to happen .

Our hands were still clasped, sitting on top of his thigh. I squeezed it as a man with a skull mask began to glow with blue UV lighting. He wore a long black cloak and nothing else. I could tell that as he moved about, flourishing a black silk sheet .

Bits of his well-muscled body made little glows as the blue light hit his flesh. I was pent up with fascination. What would the almost naked man be doing and why was the cage empty ?

He tossed the sheet high into the air and like magic, it came back down, settling perfectly over the empty cage. I sat up a little straighter in my seat so I could see every part of the dark as night stage. When Nic’s lips pressed against my neck, I nearly came undone. “Relax, the best is yet to come .”

I watched as the black silk sheet was pulled off by the cloaked man. A woman with wild blonde hair sat in the cage with shackles around her ankles, her wrists were also shackled and she had them wrapped around her knees. Her head was lying on them too, hiding her face .

“Look at me!” the man’s deep voice thundered through the exquisite sound system .

Her head raised slowly, then anther UV light hit her, a red one and it reflected off a metal gag ball that was strapped to her mouth. Hard drums and horns sounded through the speakers. The cloaked man cracked a whip as he made his way to the cage’s door .

My eyes widened as I glanced at Nicholai whose eyes were fixated on the show before us as he held my hand tightly. His muscles were tense and I felt the adrenaline that was running through him with the intensity of what we were watching unfold before us .

The red light illuminated the woman in the cage who wore a leather body holster that covered her nipples and private area but nothing else. A thin black mask, like the Lone Ranger used to wear, covered her eyes. Her lips were plump and stained with black lipstick. Her skin, which looked red in the UV light, glistened with oil. The way she was looking at him nearly made me cry .

Her expression, fear mixed with hope, was apparent all the way to where I was sitting. His expression was of course, unknown as his face was covered by the mask .

After he opened the gate, she stayed perfectly still. “Come to me,” he said with a sinister tone .

She crawled to him on all fours as far as the chains, which were attached to the cage, would allow her to, her head bowed low .

“Get up!” her master commanding and popped the whip for added effects. I gasped and Nic squeezed my hand. I saw a little smile on his face when I gave him a quick glance .

The woman who was plump and round in all the right places walked towards him, her head still held low, not looking at him, until his outstretched hand stopped her progress as it hit her chest. She then bowed low before him .

He looked down at her as she was on one knee and her other leg was merely bent so she could get right back up, easily. He placed his hand on her head as he said, “You are mine .”

“I am yours, Master,” she said with a much softer voice than his .

He brought his head back and stretched his arms to the heavens as he said, “Now I will take you .”

Two men, dressed identically to the Master, unlocked the chains that held the woman to the cage. She was essentially free at that time but waited anyway as she stayed in the same kneeling position. They took the cage and removed it from the stage as a third man placed a chair in the middle of the stage .

I looked at Nic and leaned in to whisper, “Are they about to have sex on that stage? In front of us all ?”

His lips quirked into a half smile and his finger moved to his lips. “Shhh. Just wait and see, my princess .”

I was freaking out about watching actual live people doing it right up there on stage. It was too much if they were going to be doing that !

But I was compelled to turn my eyes back to the dark stage with the red light illuminating her and the blue light him as the Master clamped on a leash to the black leather collar she was wearing, making a loud clicking sound over the speakers. He guided his slave as he took her to the chair .

He stood her at the back of the chair, moving her hands to hold onto it. I supposed to brace herself for what was coming. He backed away a few feet behind her and at the break of the music with the sounds of the violins he cracked the whip as it came crashing down on her flesh. Her body didn’t quake under the intense pressure nor did she even look to be in distress .

I thought he must’ve hit to one side of her instead of actually hitting her. That had to be it! No one could take a hit like that and not flinch at least some !

I felt the stir in the pit of my belly as I watched in awe as her demeanor stood strong as another whip crashed down upon her. The strikes looked like they were making contact but the tell-tale signs, like raised whelps, weren’t showing at all .

A tingling between my legs spiked as the drums of the music made a dramatic effect. I looked back at the man who was wielding the whip and found his erect cock was peeking out from his cloak. I leaned forward to see if what I was seeing was real. Were they about to actually do it right in front of us all ?

“Are you ok?” Nicholai leaned up and whispered into my ear .

I looked back at him, seeing his eyes calm and I knew mine were as wide as they’d ever been. “His cock is out and ready for business, Nic. Are they really going to …”

His lips were on mine and I stopped talking and thinking, then he pulled them off mine and whispered. “Just watch.” He pulled me back with him and pressed my head to lie on his shoulder as his hand finally let mine go, only to move to stroke the inside of my thigh, which was not helping me to maintain my composure one bit !

My body was reacting to what I was seeing with unbridled passion, the likes I had never experienced before. I’d seen some porn and read racy books but this was live and right in my face and the gorgeous man next to me was touching me in the right way and making me think I could do that too .

I could get into that act. I could let it all go out the window and pretend I was another person. A slave to my master. A fucking hot master who knew how to push my buttons in all the right ways .

But I wasn’t one to take risks and try new things. I liked to be normal and keep the happily ever after dream of love close to my heart. I still believed that my husband was out there somewhere. My Prince Charming cliché was just waiting for me .

Yet, I sat beside a man who was certainly no Prince Charming. The man I was with, dwelled in a fucked up lifestyle that I could barely understand. I had a small hope that maybe that was a phase and he would soon grow tired of it and learn how to be a better man. A normal man .

The instruments fell to the background, bringing me back to the show that I’d blocked out while I thought about things. I watched the Master as he laid the whip down and dropped his cloak .

I gasped again, and Nic’s hand moved further up my leg. The Master stood naked, in the blue light, his cock erect. He caressed his slave’s backside, placing small kisses upon her skin. Another man came onto the stage, dancing in a funny fashion that had people making snickering sounds. He placed something in the Master’s hand and then the sound of vibration filled our ears .

I looked at Nic with a frown. “Seriously ?”

He merely nodded and looked forward watching the show and the woman who was about to get that thing stuck in her while we all watched. I was disgusted !

But I found myself looking back at the stage anyway. The Master pulled the holster between her legs to the side. I leaned forward a bit so I could get a better view of what he was going to do. Surely, it’d be like the whip thing and he wouldn’t actually penetrate her with the device .

She pushed her ass out more for him to get a better view. I watched the thing in her master’s hand, light up. It was a dildo of massive proportions and it was wiggling with the vibrator going. I hated the fact it turned me on. And I really hated the fact that Nic’s hand was slowly but surely inching up my leg toward my personal pleasure zone .

And it hit me. Why he wanted me to learn to be quiet when he pleased me. He wanted to have sex in public places and not get caught by my loud-ass moans. And in that instant, I understood at least a little bit of why they did at least one of the things that had seemed offensive to me before .

I turned my attention back to the woman on stage and watched her eyes close in a pleasured way as the glowing cock disappeared inside of her. He was actually putting it into her right in front of tons of people and she was getting off to it .

As her eyelashes flickered I could feel the intense entrance as if I were the one being pleased in such a way. He moved it in a slow steady motion in and out of her as his other hand rubbed her ass, eventually making its way around to her breast. It seemed as if she wanted to cry out in bliss as she rocked back and forth on the nice sized rubber cock but she kept quiet, only her facial expressions and the way she moved her body told us she was enjoying it .

My body felt as if it was overheating and I might explode with my own climax if I watched anymore. I tried to get up but Nicholai held my thigh with a tight grip. “It’s almost over,” he whispered then licked along my neck. “Don’t make me watch this alone, please .”

He’d said the word, please and that was another sweet thing to do. So I gave him a look of acceptance and tried to calm myself in my seat as I began to focus my mind on the negative aspects of it. But there weren’t any negatives as she was definitely enjoying what he was doing to her .

I refocused back on her to see the look of a powerful orgasm approaching. In which I guess her master sensed the tensing of her body as he took the toy out of her canal. She didn’t have to wait for long because he then inserted himself inside of her. He pulled her hips into his midsection ravaging her as his own rage was taken out inside of her. Their bodies collided as he stroked her .

Her tits bounced up and down as he pushed the thin straps of leather away from them, showing us all her erect nipples. He teased them between his thumb and index finger as she held herself in place, pushing her ass against him .

I could feel my clit pulsate as I felt my own orgasm ready to erupt right there in my seat. Nic’s hand was holding my leg which was jumping as I tapped my heel to the floor in anticipation of the orgasms they were about to experience .

She threw her head back and I could see the trembling of her legs as she shook underneath him. They both climaxed together. He still slammed into her for the perfect friction as he released himself .

He was a man who knew that the most powerful thing while orgasming was to keep the friction going. His strokes were steady and calculated as he made sure they were both satisfied. The last sound was a loud boom, signaling it was over .

I stood as soon as the curtains closed, moving as fast as I could to find a bathroom. I could hear Nicholai calling after me but right then I wasn’t in the mind frame to obey his commands. I needed a bathroom so I could pull myself together .

Finally, stumbling upon a bathroom, I pushed the doors open and went to the sink. I turned on the cold water and splashed my face with it .

I was in a struggle to fight the urge that made me want to fall into the bliss of an erotic affair with the gorgeous man who was offering it to me .

I raised my head up and grabbed a few paper towels to dry my face. When I opened my eyes to look in the mirror he stood behind me. I held my head down, knowing that I had disobeyed him .

“You’re very beautiful.” I heard an unfamiliar voice come from behind me, wearing a mask that was just like Nic’s .

I turned around swiftly on my heels and gave the man a full once over, taking a good look at him. His hair and eyes were dark like Nicholai’s but his body was more sculpted. Nicholai had a nice body, but this guy looked chiseled to perfection and his smooth voice sent shivers down my spine. “Thank you, but I must get back.” I gave him a crooked smile as I put my mask back on .

He let me pass by him but he kept a seductive smile on his face with a nicely trimmed five o’clock shadow. As I made my way out, Nicholai was approaching with an intense look on his face as I happened to be fixing my dress .

To make matters worse the guy came out of the same bathroom, zipping his trousers and giving Nicholai a cocky smile .

Fear spread through me as I shook my head at him ready to explain. “I didn’t …”

He pressed his finger to my lips and grabbed my hand then led me back in the direction of the theater. While my heart pounded in my chest, all I could think about was what that little mishap would cost me .

NICHOLAI

I watched as James Hawthorne, mogul and heir to Hawthorne Publications, came out of the bathroom behind Natasha. Fear filled her expression as she looked at me .

I knew she didn’t do anything with him. The man was just trying to grind my gears as he always did. I’m sure he would one day forgive me for the mishap with his submissive .

It happened a year ago and she wanted out of their agreement, saying he was abusive. I had tried to get him thrown out of the BBC but his family’s influence and personal relationships with some of the members is what kept him in. I managed to get her away from him, though, by claiming her even though she wore his mark .

He was not happy with me after that. Who could blame him? But when I saw the marks he’d left on the poor young woman, I knew I had to do what I could to get her out of their bond. The elders were doing nothing for her, someone needed to step in and help .

And the way he was eyeing Natasha had me knowing I’d have to really watch her. Keep her close or he’d pounce on her in a heartbeat. I couldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t let that happen, I recall thinking as my arm tightened around the woman who walked at my side .

“I didn’t...” she tried to explain. I stopped walking and pressed my finger against her lips and took her by the hand. It was time for us to leave and for me to probe her for her thoughts on the ritual .

If she agreed to the bond, then she would soon have her own initiation ritual like they all did. I already had an idea for her intense show that would really bring her into our midst. A place I very much wanted her to be, at that time .

As we made our way back to my penthouse I stroked her arm as she held her gaze intentionally out the window. “Did you enjoy the show?” I asked her .

She turned her head to me. “Did you enjoy it ?”

I sensed an attitude and I didn’t know why. “Natasha, I asked you a question. You shouldn’t answer it with your own. You should just tell me if you enjoyed the show or not.” I gave her a hardened look that softened hers .

“Is that what you’re into?” she asked, searching my eyes for any clues .

I loosened my tie in agitation. She was all into it while we were in the theater and now that we were alone, she was growing cold and judgmental. I guess she didn’t know I could feel her pulse racing as she watched. The heat radiated from her, my hand felt it, though it wasn’t that close to her intimate area. She was turned on, I had no doubts about that. So I decided she might need things to be a bit more personal than most did .

“Not the cage and the shackles, but yes that’s a glimpse into what I’m into,” I told her. I didn’t like shackles and cages, it made everything seem so inhumane .

“But what if I like the shackles and cage? Would you use them on me?” she asked with a smile on her lips .

It took me a little by surprise as it seemed like she would think that to be abusive. But I was pretty sure she was baiting me as she had a way of doing. “It’s negotiable.” I kept my eyes on her. “Does that mean you will agree to the bond?” I was shocked by how hard my heart was beating as I waited for what I hoped would be the answer I wanted more desperately than I’d wanted anything .

“No, not until I read everything and we can adjust some of those rules and expectations.” She gave me a no nonsense look .

I nodded my head in understanding. “But I need you to read them tonight and make a list of the ones you want to change or get rid of. You can use that notebook that I gave you with the papers to write them all down. I want an accurate bond, one we both can agree on. You have to know that some of those are unbending rules. And you’ll let me know right away, correct?” I was in physical and mental pain over her making me wait. A thing I’d never been before over a woman. I should’ve seen the signs then. Instead, I was blind to them .

She gave me a feverish smile as she nodded and bit her lower lip. My eyes traveled down to her ample tits as her nipples were erect. I ran my thumb over her left nipple. She quivered at the slight touch. Her mouth slightly parted as she closed her eyes, slowly. I had to pull over and park as my body was on fire for her and I couldn’t wait any longer .

I moved my seat all the way back and pulled her to straddle me. She’d kicked off her shoes and moved easily to sit on my lap, facing me .

I kissed up her jawline, pushing the front of her dress apart to expose her bare breasts. I played with one nipple and pinched the other gently .

Our lips touched lightly, as we gazed flirtatiously at one another, our tongues found their way to one another as neither of us could wait. I could feel her heartbeat escalate as I cupped her tits in the palms of my hand .

She moaned inside my mouth as I continued to fondle her breasts. Her arms wrapped around me as she pulled herself closer to me. I could feel the heat and moisture between her thighs as she moved on my lap with a grinding motion .

I pulled off my suit jacket, keeping our lips locked as she pried at my zipper to release my hardened cock. I felt her nakedness as our skin touched and I couldn’t believe she had no panties on. It made me pissed off at her for going out like that but at the same time, I was glad not to have anything between us .

A loud knock came to the passenger side window. It startled us both and our mouths parted as our heads shot to look at who was interrupting us. An officer stood at the window, he did not look happy. “Shit,” I hissed .

“Crap!” she said as she hurried to get off my lap and I hurried to get myself tucked back into my pants .

Rolling down her window, I greeted the officer, “Hello, nice night, isn’t it ?”

“It is. And I’m sure the two of you have a better place you can finish what you started here. Don’t you?” he asked as he grinned at me. His eyes traveled only briefly over Natasha’s heaving chest and it pissed me off to no end. But I held my temper .

“We do and we’ll be going,” I told the man who nodded and walked away .

“Well, that was embarrassing,” she said as she put her seat belt back on .

My mind was still on her lack of underwear as I pulled away and began taking her home. I gave her a look of disapproval as I said in a low and even tone to make sure I had her attention. “Never come out of the house without underwear on, again .”

“The dress was too tight, panties would’ve shown,” she argued, which only made me angrier with her .

“Then why did you wear it at all, Natasha?” I asked as she fidgeted in her seat. “It’s not a thing you look at home in, anyway .”

“You think it’s unattractive?” she asked with raised eyebrows .

“I didn’t say that.” I glanced at her as I drove down the street. “I said, you didn’t look at home in it. That’s not your style. But I’ll see to that tomorrow. You’ll get a whole new wardrobe, once you sign the bond .”

“Tell me, Nic,” she said with a bit of an attitude I was not liking. “If I sign the bond, what kinds of changes am I looking at ?”

“You will be given a bedroom in my home. I will fill your drawers and closets with everything you will need. You need to merely bring your body to my home once the deal is made. Everything else, I will provide. Your car will be stored in a garage for you. You will only go places, when you go without me, with my driver. No more driving for you, It’s dangerous and you’re not to put yourself into any dangerous situations .”

“Is that so. I’m not sure I like that, Nic,” she said with a light laugh. “I do like to drive .”

“Then I will let you drive sometimes. But with me in the car with you. I don’t want you out and about all alone anymore. You see, I have certain men that would love to get their hands on what is mine and tarnish it .”

“What men would try to tarnish me, Nic?” she asked as she started messing with her hands in a nervous fashion .

I stopped at a light and took her hand, pulling it up to kiss it. “That man who followed you into the restroom, for one. If you come across a James Hawthorne for any reason, just be polite and get the fuck away from him as quickly as you can. Promise me you’ll do that, no matter what happens between us. Stay away from that man. He’s dangerous .”

“And you aren’t?” she asked with a laugh .

She wasn’t taking me seriously and that was rubbing me up the wrong way. “Natasha, I’m being serious here. You don’t seem to understand things in my world, which you are now a part of, whether you like it or not. You walked into that club. You made it seem as if you are into that lifestyle. Now you will be a woman those men will seek out. You are stunning. I guess you have no idea just how much of a prize you are .”

“I’m a prize in your world, Nic?” she asked with confusion on her pretty face. Her head began to shake. “I’ve never been highly sought after. I am no prize .”

The light changed and I took off. I had no idea she was unaware of her beauty and poise. Her body was gorgeous. How did she not see that in the mirror ?

“Maybe you were not sought after much because you are of a rare quality. It takes a man with massive self-esteem to have women of your caliber as their own. Perhaps the men you’ve been around didn’t possess that kind of self-esteem .”

She nodded and looked out the window. “Maybe that’s why he did what he did to me,” she mumbled .

“Who?” I asked as I thought she was about to let me in a bit. She had to be broken inside somewhere too, just like I was. I could feel it .

“No one,” she said too quickly. “That doesn’t matter anyway.” Her eyes scanned the area then she looked at me. “Are you taking me home ?”

“Yes,” I told her. “I had the package delivered to your dorm. It was placed on your bed. I need you to read the entire thing tonight. I want you in my home as soon as tomorrow. So please get to it as soon as you get in. I want to start this. It’s quite painful waiting .”

“Painful?” she asked as sympathy filled her face. Her hand touched mine as it rested on the steering wheel. “I had no idea .”

Another light had me stopping and I showed her a vulnerability I’d never shown anyone before. “I want you. I want you more than you can possibly understand. So please, do as I’ve requested. Read the bond and make your notes so we can discuss them tomorrow .”

“I will, Nic. I promise.” She looked away again and went distant, retreating into her own mind .

I was still unsure of what she’d do and what I’d do if she didn’t want to sign the bond. It was the first time I’d ever thought about having something other than a bond with a woman. I was positive I’d make any adjustments she asked for. Even if it meant no bond at all. But I wasn’t about to tell her that .

It would be safer with a signed bond !

NATASHA

I unlocked my door to find the apartment empty with no sign of Dani there. Making my way to my bedroom, I started pulling my dress off. It was uncomfortably tight and now that I knew Nic didn’t even like it, I was mad at myself for wearing it. I knew it was too slutty !

I couldn’t believe I gave a shit about what the man thought, but I did. It was as if I was dressing purely to please him without even knowing what did please him. And I had no idea why I was doing it. I had no idea why I was doing any of it .

Sitting on my bed after pulling a thin blue robe around myself, I saw the white box which held the bond, sitting at the end of the bed. I stared at it for the longest time .

Mentally, I was working out how things would go if I signed it. I saw me and Nic in a bunch of crazy positions. Naked, panting, sweating. It was making me hot and bothered and I had already been brought to that place and left dry twice. I wasn’t about to get myself into that trap again .

My cell went off with a text. When I looked I saw it was from Nic. ‘I hope you’re doing as I asked you to. I also wanted to let you know I made it home, safely. This is a thing that you would receive from me and I from you as a courtesy to one another. Have sweet dreams, my princess .’

A command followed by sweetness. Now that showed me where we were going. He may not have been aware of it himself, but the man was falling for me .

And I was falling for him. I knew it was dangerous to be letting myself get that way. He was straightforward with me. There was no place for love. We were to be sexual partners without emotion .

But I tapped back a text to him. ‘I am doing as you asked. Thank you for telling me you made it home, I appreciate that. I hope you sleep well, my prince .’

I put the phone down and that’s when I got the bond out to start my editing of the document that would bind us .

I was going to fix the fine print to exclude that little phrase about no emotional attachments. Why couldn’t emotions be a part of our arrangement ?

If physical pleasure was what he was after, what that lifestyle was about, then what about emotions? Not one of those people could say they had none. I saw their faces at that show. They were enthralled. Their emotions were all on display .

If lust was an emotion they allowed, why not allow more of them ?

So I opened the box and pulled out the papers and found a layer of white tissue paper laying in between the bond and something else .

I moved the tissue paper aside and there it was. The chastity belt I would have to wear if I consented to his absurd contract. Well, he said it wasn’t a contract but I saw no difference between the two, they served the same purpose .

I pulled out the metal device that resembled the outline of a pair of panties. Even the crotch was metal with large enough holes for me to use the bathroom for both areas .

A smile crept over my face as I was in total disbelief they still had those things hanging around. This shit was used in medieval times and it would serve some use in society at that time as kids were having kids .

What he wanted me to wear it for was another story all on its own. I stepped into the holster and strapped it on, the cold metal against my skin made me shiver with a slight bit of sinister enjoyment .

I made my way to look in the full-length mirror then I twirled around in it. I noticed that it made my ass sit a little higher. “Oh my God, I could get used to this,” I spoke to myself as I smiled in delight .

I tossed a dress over my body and found my ass looked sensational. So I would leave in the chastity belt rule. I’d let him think I was wearing it for himt. Even though it was entirely for me. He could hold the key to the thing, I didn’t plan on having sex with anyone else anyway .

It was time to set my mind on the rules and the rewriting of them. Nic could have me, God knows I wanted him. But he’d have me only as long as he would make some compromises .

Now that I knew it was more an act than anything else, I was prone to accept it all. But the paper would have to read the way I wanted it to or there would be no act .

I opened the notebook and started with the first rule. I wasn’t going to be called a slave. So that had to be ruled out. But I had a feeling he’d fight me on that one .

I put an asterisk by that rule in my notebook. It reminded me that would be a hard one to change and quite possibly, impossible. I skipped over the benign ones. Ones that said I was to wash myself every day. I found it absurd those kinds of rules would even need to be included. Some of the women the elders dealt with must’ve been pigs. There was even a rule about brushing hair and teeth, twice a day .

I found myself chuckling at many of the things I was reading. Some of them were comical, while others were just controlling. But I tried to really get into the ones I found hard .

The gag ball had made its way into my mind as a reasonable thing to use to learn how to control the outbursts of passion. One could get away with much more in semi-secluded areas if one knew how to be quiet .

With that thought, I stopped writing and thought about how the woman on the stage had a look about her that let all of us know she was indeed being pleasured by what was happening to her. Her face and body told us all that much .

And I found myself dropping the pen and turning over on my stomach to think about Nic and how he must think about that. How he must want to see the feelings on faces and bodies instead of hearing things people can merely make up .

I’ve heard plenty of fake orgasms on movies. Anyone can do that. But the body and face don’t lie. And that made me think Nic was much deeper than he knew he was .

I turned over and jotted down a new rule. Must make love at least once a week, using no other objects but only our bodies. We must connect, emotionally, at least once a week .

I had no idea if he’d fight me on the new rule, but I was willing to fight for it. I loved the way he handled my body. But I wanted to feel him handle me delicately too. And if what he said was true, that this was a mutual thing, then I wanted my way too. I was about to throw in the towel, essentially. I was about to become Nicholai Grimm’s slave .

The idea of having an initiation ceremony of our own flew into my mind and I laid back on the bed trying to think about that. Could I really do that? Could I go that far in public? Was I ready for that ?

The Battered Part Four

N ICHOLAI

I sat at my desk, going over the plans and contracts for the trip to Bangkok. Jennifer sat across from me in one of the overstuffed, black leather chairs, rambling on as if she was going to accompany me on that venture. But that wasn’t happening. I had another person in mind for the task of my personal assistant while traveling .

I needed my cousin, Jen, to stay there, keeping the place in shape while I was gone. My younger cousin, Demetri, wasn’t in any position to take care of business, CFO or not .

He only qualified because he was family. His wife ran him with an iron fist. She was more suitable for that job than he. “Nicholai, you have to close this deal or your father will vote against you. And we both know most of the board is eating out of his hands. He must have something on them the way they’re up his ass.” She laughed at her own joke .

But little did she know she wasn’t far off base with that. I grabbed the contracts and looked them over once again, trying to see what in the contract would possibly be changed by the client. I always felt once you knew what they’d change, it was better to change it ahead of time so it would be easier to gain their trust .

My phone rang inside my suit jacket pocket. I saw her name pop up on the screen and answered it. “Nicholai speaking .”

“I wanted to know if I could see you for dinner to go over a few things,” her sweet voice spoke softly, making my ear tingle .

I had a broad smile on my face. Natasha always brought something out in me that no one ever had. “Of course, I look forward to our discussion. I’ll pick you up at 8,” I said as I trailed my finger over the contract that was on the desk in front of me .

“I’ll be ready. I’ll be wearing normal attire unless you have somewhere you’ll be taking me that will require something other than that .”

“What is normal attire to you?” I asked her, since I’d seen her in over the top attire and business attire but nothing else .

“Jean, tennis shoes, T-shirt,” she said, making my smile go even wider as I thought of her, cute all-American looking and scrumptious .

“I can work with that. See you then.” We hung up and I looked over to see Jen with a wicked smile on her face. “None of your business, Jen,” I said before she even opened her mouth .

Grabbing my briefcase, I stuffed the contract in it and closed it. I got up, then kissed my younger cousin on her forehead like I always did, and headed out of my office to adjust the contract in peace at home where I could also prepare a menu for my cook to make us dinner that evening .

As I headed to the elevators, my cousin Demetri made his way over to me. Ending his flirting with one on the receptionists. “Nicholai, buddy, what’s going on?” He gave me a light punch as I continued to walk towards the elevator .

“On my way home to work on this contract in peace and quiet,” I said, rolling my eyes .

Demetri was like a brother more so than my own brothers, both of whom I wasn’t on speaking terms with at that time due to the fact I'd gained a job they’d been passed over for. “I’ll be right back, Staci.” He winked at the receptionist .

I looked over my shoulder, pulling a little prank on my younger cousin. “Isn’t that Tabitha right there,” I said with a serious look on my face about his wife .

He had a terrified look in his eyes. “Where?” He turned around so quick I thought he might fall. I burst out laughing when he didn’t see his witch of a wife stalking him. “Man! You damn near scared me to death. Tabitha has bionic ears.” He shook his head .

“Look, I’ll catch you later. I have a lot of work to do,” I said as I stepped onto the elevator. “Go back to sexually harassing the staff, cousin .”

He smiled and blushed a little. “Alright, man. I’ll catch up with you later. Maybe we can go out for a few drinks .”

“I’ll let you know when I can do that. See you tomorrow .”

Just as the doors closed my cell rang. I blew out an exaggerated breath then answered the call. “Hello, Nicholai here .”

“Nicholai, it’s me, Jack, down here in the warehouse. An FBI car just pulled in. You might want to come down here,” he said with a worried tone .

“I’m on my way down. I’ll be right there. Tell everyone not to talk to the agent,” I said, hanging up the phone .

My driver was waiting for me at the curb and I told him to take me to the warehouse. The FBI was a constant thorn in my side and leaving the country to wrap up this damn deal was not a great idea for me at that time. No one handled the agency as well as I did. I knew the law and I knew we were running our business on the right side of it .

I talked no nonsense with the agents who poked around our business. My father always acted nervously as if there was something to hide. That man had many things to hide, I had no doubts. But the company was a thing he made sure ran above board, always .

Once we pulled up to the warehouse I could see the black Tahoe parked outside. I walked in to see Jack talking to the agent with a nervous look on his face .

When he saw me, he looked relieved that I had come to his rescue. The agent saw his face and turned around to see me. “Nicholai Grimm, right,” the agent asked as he extended his hand to me .

I shook the man’s hand, he didn't look familiar to mer. I had never seen that agent before. “And you are?” I asked in an unflattering unpleasant tone .

He chuckled a bit, looking back at Jack. “Just like you said. He is a busy man who gets right to the point .”

I’d told Jack not to talk and he did anyway, which irritated me. The fact he said anything about me, infuriated me. “Goodbye, Jack,” I said, dismissing the man .

I stood, as the agent took a seat at the table in the break room that wasn’t offered to him. The agents liked to come in as if they owned the place. As if they were in charge of all things in the entire world. “Awe, come on, Nicholai take a seat with me. I was brought onto this case because all others are hitting dead ends here. Help me out , man .”

I did not sit down, as I said, “Did it ever occur to your agency that everyone is hitting dead ends because there is nothing to find here ?”

“Well, the people who run the FBI think there is something going on here. Illegal gun sales to be exact. I’d like to talk to anyone I can about that .”

“Well, you could’ve come to my office and I would’ve told you there, just as I told the others, your investigation won’t turn up anything. You’re wasting your time and mine. Which, thank God, isn’t slowing down our production.” I gestured to the door. “You can set up a meeting with my secretary. I’ve asked repeatedly for no agents to come to the warehouse or any of our other facilities. We do business at the office. I don’t know what any of you expect to find by coming down here, anyway .”

“So, what you’re saying, is I need to hang around town until I get a meeting set up with you. I wasn’t planning to be here that long, I live in Nantucket, but I have things I can do to entertain myself while I’m stuck here, waiting on you to give me some of your precious time, Nicholai,” he said as he got up and allowed me to escort him to the door .

“I’m a very busy man. I hope you can understand. So, I do hope you enjoy your stay in our fair city. It may be a long visit,” I said with a chuckle .

“I can wait. I have a daughter who goes to school here. I’m sure she could put her old man up for as long as I need to stay to wait for a meeting with you,” he said and something inside me went cold .

“I have an overseas commitment to tend to next week. After that, we have the holiday season and we close our offices for a week during Thanksgiving, and two weeks starting at Christmas. Perhaps you should go home and come back after the first of the year,” I said as I opened the door and let him walk out first. I followed him out and we stood on the sidewalk, sizing each other up .

“There are three more days in this week, Nicholai. Why not make an appointment for us before you leave? I think that would work out much better for us all. Don’t you agree?” he asked as he put his hands in his pockets .

“Like I said, call my secretary,” I held out a business card and he took it. “We’ll see what she can come up with .”

“I’ll do that, Nicholai.” He started to walk away and I realized I didn’t know his name .

“Hey!” I said, making him stop and turn around to look at me. “Who have I just talked to ?”

With a smile, he said, “Oh, yes. I forgot to introduce myself. You can look forward to my presence, Nicholai. I’d hate to be on a no-name basis with you. I am Agent Norman Greenwell. I’ll be seeing ya , son .”

My knees locked and I was frozen in place. The man was from Nantucket, his name was the same as Natasha’s father. He was her father and he was investigating my company .

I never saw that coming !

NATASHA

As I walked out of my last class for the day, I turned my phone off silent and saw I’d missed a call from Nic. I returned it, hoping he wasn’t putting me off about dinner that night. I’d made all the adjustments to the bond and I was looking forward to seeing how he reacted to them all .

“Finally,” he said as he answered the phone. “I need to see you. I have my driver waiting in your dorm parking lot. Bring your notes or whatever you wanted to discuss. Just grab those things and come on. No need to change clothes or primp for me or anything. Just hurry and get to me. And talk to no one. Promise me .”

“Why?” I asked as I got to my car and got in. “And I have those things in my car. Why don’t I drive to wherever you are? It’ll save your driver the time taking me back home later .”

“No!” he said, already sounding pissed. “Wait! Yes, do that. Come straight to me, Natasha. Don’t stop anywhere, please. Come to my home .”

“J eez,” I said as I got behind the wheel. “You sound a bit dramatic .”

“Don’t,” he said, sternly. “Don’t do that right now. I need to see you and explain things to you. So be careful as you drive but try to hurry. No dawdling. Understand ?”

His intense tone had me thinking maybe something really was wrong. So I decided to put on my good girl hat and be the woman he seemed to need me to be at that time. “Yes, sir. I am on my way to you as we speak. See you soon .”

“Thank you. Goodbye.” He ended the call and I tossed my phone on the passenger seat .

I had no idea what could have the man so riled up. I did think it might get in the way of us having a real discussion about the new rules for the bond. And I desperately wanted to discuss those things with him .

The car ride took nearly an hour with traffic and when I made it up to his penthouse, I was met by the doorman who wore a wide smile. “Hello, Miss Greenwell. What a pleasure it is to see you again. And so soon. Please come in, the master is in his office. Have a seat and I shall get him .”

I took a seat on the white leather sofa and placed my purse and the box on the coffee table in front of me. The way the doorman, or butler, or whatever he was, called Nic, the master, had me laughing inside .

That man liked to have the entire enchilada when it came to the lifestyle he was a part of. Even down to living his home-life like an eighteenth century Lord .

Gazing around the eloquently furnished living room, I noticed even more about the way he liked to live. Old paintings, of what looked to be his ancestors, lined one wall. The man in the middle of them had to be his father .

It was larger than the rest and much newer. Such a distinguished looking group of men, I don’t recall ever seeing. His roots were deep. I supposed he could follow them straight back to Germany. His accent was American with the slightest hint of German to it. It was one of the many things that made him so damn sexy and dominant .

That curt way he spoke. It jolted me almost every time when he’d bark a word at me .

“Natasha!” he said from behind me. Jolting me yet again and I jumped to my feet and turned to see him making swift strides to get to me .

I walked towards him to close the distance and found his arms around me, holding me close. His hand cupped the back of my head and held it to his chest where his heart was thumping like mad .

Wrapping my arms around him, I felt him relax a little. “Nic, what’s wrong ?”

“My father is coming over in just a little while.” He let me go but grabbed my hand and led me out of the room. I looked over my shoulder as we passed the things I’d laid on the table .

“Nic, I shouldn’t leave that lying around,” I said as I gestured to the white box .

“Nonsense, they’re fine there. I want to talk to you in private.” He continued to pull me with him until we came to a hallway and he opened the first door on the left .

A massive bed sat in the middle. Dark oak wood made up the canopy. Ornate carvings ran down each square post, matching the canopy. The room was all him. Manly, dark, and exquisite .

“Your bedroom, I suppose,” I said as he sat me down on the comfortable bed. I ran my hand over the jacquard print on the deep green fabric which covered the bed. “Is this made of real down ?”

“Yes, now I need to tell you about what happened today. I met your father,” he said, making my head snap up .

“Why?” I asked in near horror. My father would never approve of what we were doing. Surely, he didn’t track my father down for some reason .

“He came to one of our warehouses. He’s taken on the case the FBI is struggling to put together on my family’s company. Nearly my entire family makes their living from that company. If we lost it, it would devastate so many people who mean everything to me.” His hands moved over my head, stroking me like a puppy in an effort to calm himself .

“Are you doing anything wrong?” I asked. If he was, then my father would catch him. My father was like a bloodhound. He didn’t stop until his cases were solved .

“No, we’re clean as far as I know. My father has always kept things extremely kosher where the business is concerned. It affects too many people in his family to mess around with after all. I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about your father figuring out about you and me,” he said then sat on the bed next to me .

So there it was. He was breaking things off with me because of my father. I understood but I wasn’t happy about it at all. “I see what you’re saying, Nic. I understand your position. I will leave you alone .”

“Leave me alone?” he asked. “No, that’s the last thing I want you to do .”

I was relieved. “Oh, so what do you want ?”

“I want you to tell him about us. I want you to tell him you and I met at that interview and we hit it off and are madly in love. I want you to tell him you’re moving in with me and that we are very serious about one another. You can be the person who gets our company off the FBI’s hit list.” His smile was huge and I found it incredible for him to ask such a thing from me .

“You want me to lie to my father?” I asked as I nervously twisted my hands in my lap. “He’s like a human lie detector, Nic. You don’t know the man. He’ll see right through me and when he does he will go after you harder than he would if I was never brought into your little game .”

“I don’t think so.” He looked at me with those dark eyes and took my hands in his. “I think you do love me, Natasha .”

I choked with his words. I felt something for the man but love was too strong of a word. I wanted more than only sex from him but I wasn’t sure I’d ever get that .

The sound of the doorbell ringing had me looking away from him. “But you don’t love me, Nic. And I’m not sure if I love you or merely lust after you at this point. We will never be able to pull such a thing off. It’s better if we stop going any further with our bond until things are settled between you and the FBI .”

“My father is here.” He got up and held out his hand. I took it and went with him. “I’m not stopping things with you now. I can’t. This will work. I am pretty good at acting. And we can still have our agreement, we’ll enjoy that in private, and in public we can be a couple of star-crossed lovers. It will work. And you working for the company is the cherry on top .”

I knew he was wrong. I knew it but he was so sure and upbeat and it felt whimsical as he took me down the hallway to meet his father .

“Father, I’m so glad you made it. I have great news for our company. I do believe we’ve found us something to finally end our battles with the FBI,” Nic said as he took me into the living room .

His father was standing at the bar, swirling his finger around in a short glass of clear liquid. Vodka, I guessed. His light blue eyes penetrated mine as we looked at one another .

“Are you bringing home people you should not be, Nicholai?” he asked his son as he continued to stare at me .

I never let my eyes fall away from his. I held them on him until Nic pulled my face to his and kissed me on the mouth. I was shocked he’d do such a thing. “No, Father. I am not bringing home people I shouldn’t. My good fortune was found at the BBC one night a couple of weeks ago. I had no idea who I was branding that night. The daughter of an FBI agent. The man who has taken over the investigation of our company .”

“I don’t see that as a good thing, Nicholai. I see that as a thing that should end, immediately.” His father took a drink from the glass and moved to sit on the sofa .

Nic grabbed two beers from the mini fridge at the bar and opened them both, handing me one of them. He took my hand and led me to sit on the love seat across from his father. He pointed at the white box. “She and I have a bond. We’re about to sign it .”

“I wouldn’t do that,” his father said as he shook his head. “I doubt her father would approve of such a thing. Most don’t .”

“Her father doesn’t need to know about this part of us. He only needs to know about the part of us that is a happy couple. And she is an intern at the company already so it will work out perfectly. You’ll see,” Nic said with a certainty that his father nor I felt at all .

But I kept my mouth closed as his father was an intimidating man. “A happy couple?” he asked. “What do you mean by that ?”

“I mean we will come out as a real couple,” Nic said, as his father frowned .

“She is your whore, Nicholai. She is not the material wives are made of,” his father’s words were harsh and I was appalled .

“You do not know her, Father,” Nic defended me. “She was duped into going to the club by Daniella Day, who is her dorm mate .”

“You branded her that night, Nicholai. I was there too if you recall. She allowed you to fuck her that night. I noticed it wasn’t even long after her arrival. That is a whore, son.” He leveled his eyes on me and I looked right back at him with anger in mine. “He may not know what’s best for our company but I do. You and he are through you little bitch .”

“Father!” Nic shouted as he jumped up. “That’s not up to you and I will not stand for you calling her names .”

His father didn’t bother to get up as he took another drink then said, “You are CEO only because I am allowing that, boy. Now sit your ass down and confer with me as a gentleman would or I will have your job .”

I pulled at Nic’s hand and he sat down. His entire body was shaking and I had no idea what to do about anything. “It’s okay,” I whispered to him .

“Okay?” his father asked with a deep laugh. “It’s most definitely not okay. So you have an internship at our company, do you , girl ?”

“I do, sir,” I said in an attempt to get him to see I knew some of the rules the kind of man he was required .

“Perhaps that could be of use to us. Perhaps you could tell your father you’d be a spy on the inside for him,” his father said as he looked up, thinking. “If he thought you were taking care of his dirty work, he’d back off and end our troubles. But if your father is anything like most, he will find out everything he can about my Nicholai and he will find out he’s in the BBC and he will come at us with a vengeance only a father can .”

I looked at Nic as I knew what his father was saying was true. “He’s right you know .”

The look on Nic’s face went straight to my heart. He was devastated. And I got the feeling this loving couple he was saying he wanted us to portray was anything but a lie. I thought he was falling in love with me and thought that might be a great way out of the bond and all that went with it .

“I’ll quit the club,” he said as he looked at me. “I’ll end my membership today. How could your father come at me for anything I did in the past? All I have to say is that I was a troubled man until I met you and you pulled me out of a sinful life and into one that was good and wholesome .”

His father and I asked at the same time, “You’d quit the club ?”

NICHOLAI

The words had left my mouth before I had thought them through. Would I really quit the club I’d known since I began my career at Grimm Defense and Technology ?

The woman who sat next to me was looking at me with shock on her gorgeous face. And I was looking back at her with my soul bared to her. “I don’t want this to end. I don’t want to see you every day at work and not be able to touch you. I can’t do that, Natasha .”

My father stood up with a loud huffing sound. “This is ridiculous, Nicholai. She is just a whore you found in the club. Stop acting as if you’ve found the love of your life. Take it from me, there are no soul mates, no great loves. There are women you use to fuck and women you use to give you children. No love is involved in either .”

NATASHA

Nic’s chin was quivering he was so mad but he wasn’t saying a word as his father paced on the other side of the coffee table, lecturing about things he knew nothing of .

“There is love, sir,” I said, quietly. “I’m sorry you’ve never found it but it does exist .”

“Why are you talking, slave?” he asked me as he glared at me .

I ducked my head and felt belittled and humiliated and Nic’s hand that was holding mine was shaking. It gave me the courage to stand up to the old man who thought he could rule us .

I stood up even as Nic pulled at me not to. “Sir, I will say this one time and one time only, I am no man’s slave. I am a strong woman who will work this out with your son on our own. You should go now .”

His father’s eyes grew to the size of quarters as I spoke to him in a low and even tone that told him it was I who was taking control of the situation. He looked at Nic who’d stood up next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Are you going to allow this ?”

Nic smiled and said, “She is no man’s slave, Father. That is the truth. And I’d also like you to leave. She and I have much to discuss and your way of thinking will only lead us to a decision that will leave me more broken than I already am .”

“You think you are broken, boy?” his father shouted as his finger went into the air. “You have to marry a whore because she got her ass pregnant. Then you can talk to me about broken .”

“That’s enough!” I said as I glared at the white-haired old man who was not only insulting me but his son as well. “You will never talk that way to him again. That is his mother. I have no idea why you do what you do but he’s off limits now .”

“I can handle this,” Nic said as he took me by the waist and pulled me to him, kissing the side of my head. “This discussion is over, Father. And she’s right. The way you speak to me has to change. I want to hear no bad things said about my mother. She is a good woman after all. It’s you who should be called a whore .”

I gulped as I watched a vein start throbbing in his father’s forehead. “I will leave and you can be sure of one thing, Nicholai. You will not get to hold your place if you make decisions that will end the company your grandfather worked so hard to build and I worked hard to grow. You have two older brothers who would love a chance at running it. You are being foolish right now over this woman. My advice to you is to get her out of your system quickly or she will be your downfall .”

He left us standing there, holding onto each other as if we’d just weathered a massive storm and lived through it .

I had no idea what the right thing to do was but I had my eyes opened to what Nic had been through that had made him the man he was. And it was ugly, clean to the core .

NICHOLAI

Watching my father walk out the door, although he was shaking his head, I felt a shift in the universe. I had a woman at my side who’d defend me against him. To the Nicholas Grimm !

She was unafraid. Completely !

I was shaking with emotions I had never felt before. “You are one amazing woman, Natasha Greenwell. Even my own mother never stood up for me against him .”

She looked at me with sadness in her blue eyes. Her hand moved over my cheek as she looked at me. “We have so much to figure out , Nic .”

“We do. The main word there, being, we.” I pulled her around in front of me and kissed her with a passion I’d never felt before .

I had a partner. I’d never had one before. I had a woman who’d stay by my side and face the demons with me. She had to see, she and I were something neither of us saw coming .

I picked her up and carried her to my bedroom. She had her arms around my neck, gazing at me. “What are you doing ?”

“I am taking you to my bed. A bed no woman has ever been in.” I kissed her as I took her into the hallway .

When our mouths parted she was looking into my eyes. “And what do you plan on doing to me when you get me in there ?”

“Kissing you all over and making love to you, Natasha. I want to make love to you. I want nothing between us. I want your skin on mine and I want to feel you. All of you.” I kissed her again as I pushed the door to my bedroom open with my foot .

Her mouth was working with mine to deepen the kiss we shared. It was the first real kiss I’d ever had. A shared kiss. No domination on either side. Just a coalition bent on the same purpose. To express our care for one another .

As I laid her down on my bed, I gazed in awe at how beautiful she looked in my bed. I’d never allowed any woman in my bedroom at all. She was the first and from what I thought at that time, the only woman who would ever grace my sanctuary .

She swallowed then said, “This was in my new set of rules. Once a week, at the very least, I wanted to make love with you.” Her eyes glistened and I kissed a tear that had managed to escape, away from her rose-petal-soft cheek .

I pulled her clothes off her in a slow fashion, touching her exposed body with a reverence I hadn’t before. The truth was I’d never made love before. I’d laid out specific plans for how I was going to take a woman but I’d never relied on going on instinct alone .

After undressing her, I stood back and took my clothes off as she watched me. Her gaze told me she admired my physique. But there was more there than mere lust in those blue eyes. I saw it. She cared for me .

Before I touched her, I told her words I’d never uttered before. “I think I love you, Natasha .”

Her lips went up in a half smile. “That’s funny. I think I love you too , Nic .”

My heart fluttered in my chest as I laid my body down next to hers and stroked her bare stomach as I looked into her eyes. It was as if I was in a dream. That could never be my real life. No woman could ever tame me, break me, call me hers .

Natasha was not a normal woman, in my opinion. She was more than any woman I’d ever known. My money did not make her cave to me so she could have as much of it as I’d bestow upon her. My looks didn’t bring her to her knees in hopes of getting to lay her hands on me .

She was something else. She was the one for me and I was beginning to get that cemented into my stubborn head. Her body trembled as I moved my hands over it .

It was not from fear this time it was from pure unadulterated emotion. She was falling for me. I knew she was from the very start. I could see it in her eyes .

The bond agreement would never work with a woman like her. She was not made to be broken. My plans for her had changed when she showed me that side of her. The protectiveness she had for me was a thing I never even knew I’d like .

But then again, no one had ever been protective over me. Not even my parents. I recalled being bullied in the schoolyard by a boy three years older than the 11-year-old I was then. When I came home with a black eye and busted lip, my father spanked me .

My mother turned away from the scene, leaving me to him. After he spanked me many times, he told me I was to stand up to that boy and if I came home hurt by him again, he’d add to the punishment .

I had no choices then. I had to become brutal if I was to come home unscathed by the older and bigger boy. My father had not taught me how to defend myself in the least. He acted as if I should’ve instinctively known .

That instinct had not kicked in. If there was one at all. I went to school with a rock in my backpack. I put it in a side pocket so I could easily get to it. I knew if I held that rock in my hand my punch would carry more weight and when that boy called to me to face him, yet again. I did so with the rock in my hand .

His face was a bloody mess by the time I stopped and I was unharmed. As I left that schoolyard with kids cheering for me, it was not victory I felt. It was defeat. I had become something my father would be proud of and that made me sick inside .

That feeling just grew as I grew older and found the ways he demanded I be, always brought more sickness to my soul. When I was only 15-years-old, he brought a woman to my bedroom and simply pushed her inside, then closed the door .

I had no idea why he’d done such a thing until the woman came to me and showed me exactly why she was there. My first tutor in the sexual subject. And she was to teach me to lord over her. Not make love to her or her to me. She taught me the ways of my father’s world and I grew sicker inside .

She made me spank her when I did not want to. She made me act like an animal as I plunged my cock into her stinking depths of wet heat. I hated her but more so, I hated my father .

My older brothers clamored for my father’s attention. They have always had hard feelings for me because my father married my mother and he never married theirs. My brothers have two different mothers. It seemed my father never wanted to have more than one child with any woman .

Their mothers came before his tryst in the BBC with my mother which carried rules for such things as pregnancies, else he’d have never made an honest woman of her either .

My mother was a nice woman when my father was not around. She’d do nice things for me and she’d even slip in the word, love, sometimes. A thing my father never allowed, as in his opinion, it would make me soft and he’d never have a soft son. Not Nicholas Grimm !

The touch of her hand moving over my cheek brought me out of my inner thoughts. “You look like you’re a million miles away, Nic. You can talk to me you know. You can tell me anything you want or need to. I’m here for you. Use my ear to your advantage, my prince .”

As I gazed down at her from my raised position, I could feel it enveloping me. The feeling that would be my demise. Complete love for another human being. The straw that would break my father’s back .

NATASHA

For hours we laid in that bed, caressing one another as Nic told horror story after horror story about his childhood. I thought I had a traumatic childhood but his blew mine out of the water .

No tears ever left his eyes when he told me the horrible things he’d been put through. But at times unshed tears shimmered in his dark eyes and brought feelings to the surface I’d been tamping down .

It was bad. I was in love with the man by the time he finished his tale that wasn’t nearly all of his life. I kissed him with compassion when he was done and he kissed me back with hope .

I could feel it welling up inside of him. He had hope that life wasn’t all he thought it was. Darkness was not all there was. There was light and he had hope I’d show it to him .

I wanted to make things better for him more badly than I had ever wanted anything. Our bodies moved together as one entity. Not merely to get all the pleasure we could ring out of the sexual act. No, that time, the first time we’d ever made love, was different .

All of the emotion he’d been taught to ignore, came to the surface. His touch was soft and gentle. The way his hands moved over my body was fluid-like. He was a river washing over me and together we cleansed one another of the things that had tarnished us .

I had my secrets too and I wasn’t quite ready to talk about them at that time. Mine were still too deeply covered to come up to the surface at that time. They’d show their ugliness later, though .

But then it was like a rainbow was over us, protecting us from the evils of the world while we showed one another what love is. His body felt better than I thought it would as his massive muscles rippled over my soft curves .

Our breathing was like a symphony with high sounds and low sounds and he not once told me a thing about being quiet. He actually said the opposite, “The way you sound makes my heart quiver. I can tell by the way your body is moving in unison with mine and your face glows with emotion that you mean the sounds you’re making. It’s a thing of great beauty .”

I wanted to weep with his words but I didn’t. I kept them closed up inside of me and merely nodded in agreement. “You are a wonderful love maker , Nic .”

“Who knew?” he asked with a chuckle .

His deep laugh shook his body, vibrating mine as he did. Our love went on and on the whole night long. We’d sleep in short spurts but one or the other of us would wake the other with soft kisses, coos, and caresses. It was more beautiful than I even dreamt it would be and I had dreamt about it .

It felt cemented, our love. It felt real. I’d never felt anything like it. But I knew, even in that state of pure emotion, that things would never go easy for us .

His father was obviously against me and I knew he’d detest the new way Nic would be with me. I knew that dominance was far behind him where I was concerned. His father would hate me, even more, when he saw the softness between us .

And I knew my father wouldn’t be happy either. My father was very demanding as well. I suppose one doesn’t get into the FBI while being soft and easy going. My father was neither of those things .

I’d seen my father be more than brutal. It was a scary thing to witness and what made that worse was the man he’d hurt more than necessary was innocent of what I’d accused him of .

I had lied to hurt a man because of teenage lust and it had cost that man his family and more. My father’s fury was such that I never told the truth about it .

No authorities were ever told about what I’d accused the man of. My father took care of it in his own way rather than let the authorities investigate the crime I accused the man of .

Not a day goes by I don’t think about what I did. Not a single day .

NICHOLAI

Soft wisps of her silky blonde hair tickled my nose as I cuddled her from behind. Never had I done such a thing. A sleepy smile broke my lips as I thought about all we’d done during the night. How crazy it all was and how the new day would find us .

We were wrapped in the sheets which were a mess. Kissing the back of her neck to wake her up, I found my cock getting hard again and could hardly believe it. We’d made love for so long and so often that night, I thought I’d be spent up of any juices to create another erection .

I was wrong though and as she turned in my arms with a delightful groan I could tell we were going to do it again. Her sleepy face was slightly puffy and her hair was a mess and she’d never looked more beautiful as I knew it was my love which had her in such a state .

“Good morning, my princess,” I greeted her then kissed her swollen lips. Mine were swollen as well and when mine touched hers it sent a shiver down my spine .

She moaned and wrapped her arms around me, throwing one leg over mine and moving her body to mine until I was solidly inside of her. I cannot explain what it felt like to hold her that way. It was beyond comparison and I knew no one would ever make me feel that comfortable again. She was the only one who could .

“After this, we have to get up, shower and get to work,” I told her as I moved steadily back and forth as she did too .

“Okay,” she kissed my cheek then whispered, “Master .”

I chuckled with her word. “I prefer to be called your prince now if you don’t mind ?”

Her eyes opened and she gazed at me as her hand moved through my hair. “My prince. That you are, Nic. My sweet, sweet, Nicholai .”

“I am your sweet Nicholai, Natasha. And you are my sweet princess .”

Our bodies rocked together in an easy fashion. Not passionate, not heated, just comfortable bliss the likes I’d never known existed. When our orgasms came at the same time, I knew we were set. I could’ve married that woman that very day and never thought another thing about it .

But we had at least one man who would be against us and that man had a lot of power over me. I was not fool enough to think I could completely break away from his hand .

Then there would be her father to contend with too. I also wasn’t foolish enough to think he would easily accept our union. But by God, I was going to give it all I had to make them both understand, we were going to be together come hell or high water. I just didn’t know we’d actually have to go through that .

Once our bodies had finished giving to other’s what it needed, I took her to the shower and cleaned her hair and her body as she cleaned mine. Another thing I’d never done in quite the way we were doing. Soft, gentle touches followed by kisses full of love, not lust .

I found myself saying the words I knew she should hear from me. “I love you, Natasha .”

Her eyes sparkled as she said, “I love you , Nic .”

It was a done deal. We were a couple. Not bound by anything but our love for one another. I could hardly believe it but it was true. I was a changed man in the matter of one night of love making .

“We have to get you a passport if you don’t have one. You’re going to be my personal assistant for the trip to Bangkok.” I rinsed her hair out after shampooing it .

Her smile was shy as she said, “I have one. I got it for a cruise my family went on last year. I’ve heard that place is a den of inequity , Nic .”

“It is,” I said then kissed her neck .

“Perhaps you could show me some more of what you did at the show the other night. I have to admit I found that very stimulating .”

Surprise didn’t fill me as I knew she was into darker things than she liked to claim she was. But that would be another country where no one knew her to judge her. “I can show you things to entice you if you want me to .”

Her eyes were bright as she said, “I want you to. I found that very much to my liking. I don’t want to stop doing that. You still want to, don’t you ?”

“We’ll have to lay low with the BBC while your father is around. Speaking of him, I need you to forgo any classes you have today and come to work with me. I need you there for the meeting he wants to have. And you do recall how we met, in the little lie we’ll tell him, right?” I ran my hands full of coconut scented conditioner through her long hair as she looked at me .

“We met when I interviewed to be your intern. Of course, I remember that. And just what do you think my presence at that meeting will accomplish ?”

“I think it will accomplish more than if you weren’t there. And our news will throw your father off a bit, I’m sure. We’ll have to play it as it goes along.” I rinsed her hair out as she looked at me with a thoughtful look in her eyes .

“Play it by ear, huh?” she asked. “That doesn’t sound like you at all .”

“I have to admit, it doesn’t. But with your help, perhaps we can get the FBI to get off our backs, if only for a little while. I could use the ease in pressure. Especially since now I know my father will be on the war path with me .”

Her eyes fell away from mine. “How bad is that going to be ?”

“I have no idea with that man. I just know, I want you with me to be able to protect you from anything he might pull. Nothing is beyond him .”

Sadness covered her face and it made me mad. “So, essentially, I am still your slave as my freedom is a thing that could get me hurt, is that what you’re saying ?”

I took her chin in my hand and made her look at me. “You know you’re not a slave to me. You are mine but I am also yours. For now, until my father realizes I will not bend to his will, you are safer with me. So things will go the way I’d planned if you’d signed the bond. Only the new clothes will not go in the other room as planned. They will come into mine. We will share that room. We will share it for a very long time, I hope .”

“This is turning out better than I hoped it would,” she said and I had to nod in agreement with her .

Things were coming along nicely between us. It would’ve been fantastic if there had been no interferences. But there were. There had to be. My life never went easy .

And it seemed hers hadn’t either .

NATASHA

A cold sweat broke out all over my body as I waited in Nic’s office for my father’s arrival. He’d set up a round table for the meeting to take place at. It was in the entrance room just in front of his office .

When my father came in we’d go into that room to conduct the meeting it felt insanely odd to be a part of. But Nic had some idea my presence would end the feud between Grimm Defense and Technology and the FBI. I was not so sure about that .

“I’m letting Agent Greenwell in to see you, sir,” his secretary told him over the intercom .

Nic got up, buttoned his dark suit jacket and gestured for me to go out in front of him. I wanted to hide behind him and maybe stay that way through the whole thing but he was having none of that .

I walked out, with him one step behind me. He’d bought me something suitable in his eyes for me to wear as his personal assistant. A navy business suit which was ridiculously expensive but I really loved it. It fit just right and I loved the way the skirt went to just below my knees and the jacket made my waist look great .

I was looking the part of the billionaire’s personal assistant on the outside but on the inside, I was still daddy’s little girl and pretty scared of what his reaction would be. Well, scared isn’t strong enough to explain how I was feeling at that moment, terrified works a lot better .

Butterflies were swarming my insides as we stood, waiting for my father to enter the room and I knew he’d probably be shocked by what he was about to see .

When Nic’s hand rested in the small of my back, I just about jumped. “Maybe you shouldn’t touch me in front of him .”

“Nonsense,” he said with an air of authority. “I am in love with you. It’s completely natural for us to touch .”

“But we’re trying to be professional right now,” I said as I held a smile on my face, waiting for Dad to come into the room .

“Professional we will be. But I do love you so I will touch you when I want to,” he said through the smile frozen on his face too .

I could see that dominance was not entirely gone at that point and it kind of made me happy. At least he wasn’t becoming a hopelessly in love little puppy dog who his father would despise .

The door opened, my heart stopped and in stepped my father. His eyes were on Nic then they moved down to me. “Tasha, what are you doing here ?”

I waved a little nervous wave as I said, “Hi, Dad. I work here now. Just started a few days ago .”

My father stopped in his tracks. “You work here? As what ?”

Hooking my thumb at Nic, who still stood behind me, I said, “I’m his personal assistant .”

“She’s in charge of my overseas trips. She’ll go with me on any trips I take so I can leave my normal personal assistant here to oversee things while I’m gone. She told me you were her father. Imagine my surprise,” Nic said. He stepped forward and held out his hand to shake my father’s .

Dad took his hand and shook it lightly as he looked at me. “You work for this man , here ?”

I nodded as Nic let Dad’s hand go and gestured to a chair. “Won’t you have a seat, Agent Greenwell. We have much to talk about, it seems .”

“Seems we do,” Dad said then sat down .

I sat down and Nic came to sit next to me, across the table from my father who was looking quite stunned. I wasn’t sure telling him the rest of the news was a good idea at that time as he had so much to take in already. But Nic was in steamroller mode .

“Your daughter and I have been seeing each other since that interview. I found her captivating. We’ve gotten very serious very quickly. She’s actually moving in with me today,” Nic said, making my father go pale .

“You’re what?” Dad asked me as his eyes went wide .

“Yeah, Nic and I are a thing, Dad. I was keeping it hush, hush until we were sure we were really going to go for it. And we are. So it’s going to be out in the open now. Isn’t that great ?”

He just stared at me for the longest time then he said, “Baby, do you know what this man is into ?”

I had a feeling he’d dig deep until he knew everything there was to know about Nic. “Yes, I do. I’m well aware of his dealings , Dad .”

“That’s behind me, sir. I assure you,” Nic said, quickly. “When I met your daughter my world changed. She’s a bright light in what was a dark storm. She is my princess and I treat her as such. You have nothing to worry about. I would never harm a hair on her sweet little head. I swear that to you .”

Dad’s eyes moved to Nic’s. “I can’t give my consent to this. Not the job or the relationship. You have to understand. I am her father. A very protective father. It’s not personal.” Then he hesitated and looked at me then back at Nic. “Who am I kidding? It is personal. I know all about you, Nicholai Grimm. You could never be the man my daughter deserves. You are evil and she just isn’t seeing it because of your money and looks. I can make her see it. I can show her what I’ve found out about you. This will never be .”

My heart sank as I knew my father would be like this. But I also knew I was not one to be told how to live my life. “Dad, you and I can talk later. And you should know. I’m not about to end things with Nic. I know what he’s been into. I know more than you think I do. His money and looks are not what I see in him. We have a deep connection I don’t expect you to understand or agree with. But I am your daughter, and as such, you have taught me to stand up for myself. I will not be told what to do by you or anyone else .”

Nic laughed, lightly. “She is right about that. Her will is strong. That is one of the many things I love about her. You have raised a wonderful daughter. One with the strength of a bear and the heart of a lion. You should be proud of that accomplishment. There is no other quite like my Natasha .”

His arm ran around me and he kissed the side of my head. I watched my father’s hands ball into fists and I knew he wanted nothing more than to attempt to tear Nic limb from limb .

But then the door opened again and Nic’s father stepped inside. “What are you doing here?” he asked me .

Nic went tense immediately. “Father, we are in an important meeting. Jen should’ve told you that. I can meet with you later. I’ll come to you .”

“Why do you have your whore here?” he asked .

My father sprang out of his chair. “That’s my daughter, Grimm. You better watch your words, carefully. I’ve done bad things to men who’ve said less about her .”

Nic’s father looked at mine with disgust. “You raised this? I’ve often wondered what kind of men raise these women who have little to no self-esteem. A powerful FBI agent has been one who raised a slave. I’d never have thought .”

“She’s no slave,” Nic said and stood up, pulling me up with him but all I wanted to do was run out of there .

“She better not be,” Dad said as he kept his eyes on Nic’s father. “I know all about you too, Nicholas Grimm. And it is you who will burn for the things you’ve done. Perhaps your son isn’t aware of all you’ve done in the name of family and fortune. It was your father who was a founding member of the BDSM club you charmingly refer to as The Billionaire Bad Boy Club. A place where women are taken to be tortured and raped .”

“Dad, it’s not like that at all,” I said to try to bring the terrible situation to some kind of calm place. As it was at that moment, I was afraid a brawl was about to break out between our fathers .

“You have no idea, baby girl,” Dad said. “I’ve seen it, firsthand .”

“You’ve what?” Nic and I said together .

“I’ve been there, recently. With a federal judge’s daughter. We’ve been investigating that club secretly,” Dad said, blowing me out of the water .

He couldn’t have been there the night I was. And he’d said he’d gone with a judge’s daughter. My mind started twisting. “Is her name Daniella Day ?”

Dad’s eyes cut to me. “Yes, your roommate is the one who took me into it. During the early evening while no one was there. I simply mingled in once the others started to arrive. And you wouldn’t believe the things I saw going on there. And that man you’re letting touch you was right there with them most of the times I went .”

I knew he was. It was all becoming crystal clear. Dani’s date that day, the one who was driving the black Tahoe, was my father. She’d been working undercover to get that club closed down. But why bring me to it ?

No answers were coming to me and I had no idea if Dad knew about her doing that or not. He didn’t seem to know that so I kept my mouth shut .

Nic’s father was outraged. “Have her banned immediately!” he shouted at Nic .”

“Father, I’m no longer a part of that club,” Nic said then pulled me closer to him. “Leave me out of that. I’ll deal with the company. You deal with the BBC .”

The new information about the club being secretly investigated had Nic’s father forgoing the argument there and going to deal with the BBC. I was unsure of what was going on but I knew my father wanted me out of all of it but I was tangled up in both things .

Dad turned to me. “You’re coming with me .”

Nic’s grip tightened. “ No , sir .”

My father’s face went beet red. “Have you made her sign one of those illegal Master/Slave contracts ?”

“No, he has not,” I said and held my hand up as my father was moving slowly toward me .

I knew he meant to hit Nic and take me from him. “I don’t believe you. I can see him towering over you. I have seen this man in action, baby. You do not belong here. You will come with me. Don’t make me do this the hard way. I’m begging you. I will never stand for this, Natasha .”

After taking a deep breath, I knew what I had to do. Turning to look at Nic, I said, “Let me go. I’ll go with him. He won’t stop until I do and I don’t want you to get hurt .”

My heart was breaking as Nic held tight to me. His eyes searched mine. “Please, don’t go .”

“Nic, this is getting out of hand. He will hurt you .”

“I will, Nicholai. Let her go,” my father said as he took another step closer to us .

Nic said one word then and it tore me in two, “Mercy .”

The Barricade Part Five

N ICHOLAI

“That was the last word I ever said to her. Mercy. Then her father dragged her out of my office .”

Her eyes were full of fear and tears as she cried out to me, “Let him take me. Don’t fight him, Nic! I’ll talk to you soon .”

“And how long ago was that, exactly?” my psychiatrist asks me .

“Thirteen months,” I tell him. “We’ve been apart for thirteen, hard as hell, months. I have no idea where she is. I can’t even reach her father. The one good thing about it is the FBI has left us alone, completely. Not a peep has been heard from them about our company or the BBC .”

“I have to let you know, it’s quite possible, the young woman herself, may be the one hiding from you, Nicholai. The story you’ve told me is full of negative treatment of her. You might possibly never see her again, per her wishes. It’s been over a year. You should move on.” I watch him jot something on the notes where he’s recorded everything I’ve told him about mine and Natasha’s past .

He’s obviously not listened to how we spent our last night together. “I told you, we made love. She knew things weren’t going to be the way they initially began .”

“But, with her father’s disapproval, she may have decided it wouldn’t be worth the fight she’d have to put up with her family to stay with you. Your world is one not many parents would approve of for their daughters, nor sons for that matter. You have to understand, you come from a different upbringing than she did.” His light blue eyes search mine as if to find a part of me who understands him .

But there isn’t any. “I am what some would call, a catch, Dr. Freeman. A billionaire with a handsome face and athletic body. And she knew I was forgoing that lifestyle for her. I know she’s not hiding from me all on her own. I have people looking for her and I will continue my search for her. I came to you for help, not judgment .”

He leans forward, re-positioning himself in the plush cushioned chair. His graying hair falls into his wrinkled face a little, making him push it back as he says, “I am not judging you, Nicholai. I am simply telling you the young woman may have her family making it hard for her to be with you. I do not judge people. We all have our little vices and idiosyncrasies, that make us who we are after all .”

I still feel judged, though. “I should go. I need to blow off some steam.” As I get up to leave, I see him frowning. “The frown is for ?”

“What are you going to do to blow off this steam?” he asks with his pen at the ready on the pad of paper .

“Take a jog and get some exercise,” I say with a smile. “That is how I blow off steam since she was taken from me. I’ve not stepped foot in the club or been to any event .”

“Cold turkey, huh?” he asks, noting that. “That often doesn’t last. One who goes that route to end vices usually ends up plunging back into the vice with a vengeance. You can expect your will to bend and most likely sooner rather than later .”

I came to the man for help and feel I’m getting anything but that. “Dr. Freeman, I feel as if I’ve paid you to merely hear my story. You’ve done nothing to help me alleviate my worries, my pain, my agony .”

“There is little that can be done about that. You need to let her go. She’s gone,” he tells me as if that’s simple to do .

“I can’t. I need her. I need her like I need air to breathe. I can see looking for mental help is not my answer. I need to find her and will never be whole again until I do. Even if I find her, only for her to tell me she wants nothing to do with me. I will move on if she doesn’t want me. Though that too will take a toll on me. I’ve never needed anyone before. She’s the first and only. I can’t just stop the need I have for her .”

“Then you will stay upset and frustrated, Nicholai,” he says as he pulls a small pad out of his jacket pocket. “I can write you a prescription that will ease your anxiety .”

“Don’t bother,” I tell him as I turn to leave. “I’ll not dampen my thoughts and fog my brain in order to calm myself. That will do me no good in finding her .”

“Her father works for the FBI,” he says, making me stop my exit. “It’s highly doubtful she’s any place you’d find her. Think about what I’ve said. At least think about it. Both of your fathers are against any union between you and Natasha Greenwell. That is a fact. Bringing her back here will only start your father on his mission to break you two up .”

With a growl, I leave his office, three thousand dollars later and with no relief. The walk to the elevator has me pounding the floor with each step I take. I’ve never been angrier .

How could he tell me to get over her? How does he not understand I can’t do that ?

The doors open and out steps a tall blonde with a short skirt on. Her legs are long and lean and I look at them as she strides out of the elevator. “Hello,” she says with a soft voice .

“Good afternoon,” I say then get into the elevator and push the button to close the doors .

She stops and looks at me as the doors close, with a smile on her face and a small, flirtatious wave .

I merely nod at her then my eyes go to stare at the floor. Before Natasha, I would’ve been all over that woman. Since her disappearance, my libido has gone south. If I never find her, I don’t know what I’ll do .

Can life go on with never knowing where she is or if she’s okay? And will life be worth living if I never find that out ?

I have so many questions that no one seems to know the answers to. All I know is my heart pounds more than it ever has. My head aches more often then it doesn’t. My body feels numb most of the time. This is no way to live. I feel as if I’m just taking in air and little else .

The vibration of my cell phone in my jacket pocket has me drawing it out, ever hopeful it will be Natasha on my screen. Instead, it’s a number I don’t recognize. “ Grimm , here .”

“Nicholai, I need to meet with you,” a man’s voice tells me .

“Who is this?” I ask as I step out of the elevator .

“My name is unimportant. You need only to know one thing, Natasha sent me .”

NATASHA

A cool breeze blows my way as I sit in front of the open window at the top of the castle that’s become my prison. The Aegean Sea is sparkling under the sun’s rays. My father has one of his friends keeping me here, in Thessaloniki, Greece .

He took me away from Nic one morning about thirteen months ago. He stayed right with me as he took me onto an FBI jet that moved me from place to place, I suppose hoping to make tracking my whereabouts hard .

The first thing my father did was destroy my cell phone. With that, he destroyed any chances of Nic getting to me. I’ve been under psychiatric care each day to rid me of the brainwashing my father claims Nic did to me .

He tells me, and anyone else who will listen to him, that he did not raise a woman who’d live that kind of a life. He tells me I’m better than that and Nicholai Grimm is one evil man .

No matter the things he says or the psychiatrist, for that matter, I still love Nic and miss him all the time. I don’t feel as if I’ve been brainwashed in the least. I feel I’ve been kidnapped, though. I feel my life has been taken away from me .

With no phones in the castle, I’ve had no way to attempt to contact Nic. No one will send my letters to his company, the only address I could think of to send letters to in an attempt to let him know where I am. I wrote several letters to his personal assistant, who is also his cousin, as I knew they’d never allow anything to be sent to Nic .

The lady who oversees me took them from me with promises to mail them. Only she never did as I found bits and pieces of them in the trash. She is nice to me as are all the people my father has holding me prisoner in this castle that has been abandoned for years .

I think it’s highly doubtful anyone is aware six people are living here. There’s no electricity, no candles light the night for us. When the sun goes down, we all go to bed .

There’s no television or radio, nothing. To entertain myself, I’ve been given many notebooks, pens, and pencils. I draw some and write stories some. I write letters to Nic that I know he’ll never see. I’m more than sad and lonely .

My father visits me once a week. He’s not even told my mother where I am. Only that I am safe. His plan is to keep me here until the good doctor thinks I’ve been successfully rehabilitated .

So, I lie about everything I tell the doctor. I tell him I know what Nic did was wrong and I just want to go back to college and get on with my life, leaving Nic out of it, completely .

The man knows I’m lying. He won’t say it to my face but he’s not told my father I’m cured of Nic’s brainwashing either. That tells me he’s most likely having someone snooping through my things when I’m not in my room to find out what I’ve been writing about .

My newest idea is to stop writing about Nic completely. But it’s damn hard not to express my feelings. Now, I express them mentally, and that is all .

My father, being the master interrogator that he is, had me telling him everything about me and Nic. I don’t know if he manages to mix truth serum into my food or what but I find myself unable to lie to the man .

He hasn’t asked me about the incident when I was a teen, though. I suppose somewhere deep inside of him, he doesn’t want to know the truth about that. He’d have to feel shame for hurting a man who didn’t deserve it. My father doesn’t like to feel shame .

I’ve written several letters to the man whose life I ruined. Those too were never sent as I have no idea where he lives anymore. But I wrote them in an attempt to appease my conscience. I don’t know if it’s helped or not .

I still feel numb about that time in my life. I’d assume it hasn’t helped. So, today I’ve decided to talk to the shrink about that part of my life. There is confidentiality between us. I do believe he’s a man of his word .

I overheard he and my father getting into a heated argument when he refused to tell my father anything about our sessions. My father is a hard man to say no to and that made me feel a bit better about anything I tell the doctor .

A knock at the door signals someone is about to unlock it and come inside. I have no idea what the exact time is as I have no device to let me know that. I watch the sun and guess but that’s about all I can do .

The woman, who speaks no English, brings me my afternoon meal of a cheese sandwich and boiled potatoes. A pot of warm tea is on the tray and she places it on the side table .

I give her a nod and she returns one to me. “Thank you,” I say .

She merely nods again and leaves. I hear the door lock as it’s padlocked from the outside. A metal rod was placed between the stone wall and the heavy wooden door, it runs through a metal sheathing they put a lock on to hold me in the room with no worries of me getting out .

When you add in they’ve put me at the tip-top of the castle, I have no way to get out. Although I can see the genius in it, I hate it. I hate everything about this .

My birth control pills were left behind, sending my body into an upheaval of hormones. My cycle is completely off and has me doubling over with cramps often. The way they deal with feminine necessities here is not a thing I like at all .

As I sip on the warm tea that’s on the bitter side, I start to feel tired. A nap follows every meal for some reason. I don’t know if I’m sick or what the problem is. I just know it’s hard to think straight .

Another knock comes to the door and it opens. A young man is standing at it. “I am here for you, Natasha .”

He’s of average height and weight. There’s a gleam in his blue eyes that tells me he’s got some kind of a secret as he steps into the room, closing the door behind him. I hear someone lock the door from the other side .

My mind is swimming and I suddenly realize there must be something in the tea that’s making me feel this way. “Who are you ?”

He moves slowly toward the bed then sits on it. I’m at the small table, sitting in a chair. My eyes follow him but I’m having trouble keeping my focus .

“Your doctor sent me to you. He thinks you need another man to help you get over the one you were taken from. I am to be that man, Natasha. My name is Nic .”

I shudder at the name and shake my head. “No! No, I want no other man. You should leave .”

When he pulls a line of condoms out of his pocket, he grins at me. “I think you might be in need of some sexual release , yes ?”

“No!” I try to stand up but I fall right back on my ass. “Leave !”

“But I cannot leave. They have locked me in with you. For the night.” His words leave me stunned. They’ve gone too far !

“I will not do anything with you. Put the condoms away and leave me the hell alone,” I shout at him .

My eyes are feeling heavy even though I’m furious. He pulls something else out of his pocket and comes toward me. “I have this to help stimulate your libido, Natasha .”

“No!” I shout but quickly find that was a huge mistake .

The pill is placed in my mouth and his hand covers my mouth, holding it in. I feel the pill dissolving on my tongue and gag a bit with the acrid taste. He doesn’t move his hand until he sees me swallowing the nasty thing down .

A smile moves over his face as he steps back. “I’ll wait in the bed with no clothes on. You’ll be coming to me soon .”

All I have is the damn tea, I know is drugged now, to drink to wash the taste from my mouth. I take a drink then ask, “What did you give me ?”

“What do you call it in your country?” he asks as if I should know. “Here, we call it ecstasy .”

I’m Fucked !

NICHOLAI

“It’s possible I’m being watched,” the man, with a heavy Greek accent tells me as I find myself falling against the wall once I exit the elevator. My hand grips the phone as if it’s a lifeline. “We should meet someplace discreet. You have any ideas ?”

“There’s a café we could meet at. You sit at one table and I’ll sit at the one behind you. We can talk without anyone knowing we’re meeting at all. I’ll change my clothes and wear a hat and sunglasses so I mix in with the crowd,” I tell him. “I’ll text you the address. Is she okay?” I close my eyes as I wait for his answer .

“She is okay. She misses you more than you can comprehend, though .”

I can comprehend it. I also miss her that much. “I have to change. I’ll send you the information. And, thank you .”

We end the call and I feel a weight of emotion fall on top of me like an avalanche. Hurrying to the bathroom, I find myself crying as I open the door and lock it behind me .

She’s okay !

And she’s sent someone to me. I’ll have her in my arms again soon !

My knees are weak and I lean against the wall again to support myself. I don’t recall the last time I cried. I was a small boy, I think. Many times, I’ve felt like crying with her gone but now the tears are flowing from my eyes all on their own .

Heaving my body off the wall, I move to wash my face in the sink. Tossing water over it, I feel a bit better. Then it hits me that I’m wasting precious time and my tears halt .

Wiping my face with a paper towel to dry it, I then hurry out of the bathroom and make my way to a little clothing shop not far from the building my shrink’s office is in .

Changing inside the store is the best idea. I will emerge as a different man. If I am being followed, surely they will not think it’s me. I hope this works !

The store is on the right and I slip inside of it. The door chimes when one enters the store. As I make my way to the outdoor clothing part of the store, I listen to hear if anyone comes in directly after me. That would signal that I am being followed .

Not hearing anything, I hurry to find a set of sweat pants and a hooded shirt to go with it. I find some dark sunglasses and running shoes too. As I walk toward the counter to pay, I notice a shaving set and pick it up too .

I’ve let my beard grow out and if I shave it off, it’ll further distract from my usual appearance. The clerk rings my purchases up and I take them in the bag he placed them in and make my way to the bathroom I saw in the back of the store .

It’s a private one, so I lock myself inside and change and shave, stuffing my suit and shoes into the bag. Running my hand over my now clean-shaven face, I put on the sunglasses and pull the hood up on the sweatshirt .

I pass the clerk to see if he says anything that tells me I’m still recognizable as the man he just waited on. He watches me pass by then says, “Did you need to make a return , sir ?”

“Huh?” I ask as I stop .

He points to the bag. “Did you bring in a return ?”

Then I see he doesn’t recognize me and it makes me smile. “No, thanks anyway. I’ve changed my mind. I’ll keep the clothes . Bye .”

Wiping the smile off my face so I don’t draw any attention to myself, I put an emotionless expression on and head out the door. Moving swiftly, I make my way to the café to meet with the man who knows where my Natasha is .

The café comes up soon and I text the man I am to meet, ‘Are you at the café yet ?’

He texts back, ‘I am. I am wearing a red baseball hat and am sitting at the back of the café. There’s an empty seat right behind me .’

Opening the door, I spot the red hat and head toward the back of the café. It’s one where you place an order up front and the person at the counter greets me, “What can I get for you today , sir ?”

I stop so I don’t look so obvious that I’m here merely to meet someone. “How about a bottle of water and one cookie. Chocolate chip. Just a little snack, not very hungry .”

She nods and hands me the things and I swipe my card to pay for them. Then I head to the back of the café and take the seat behind the man. “I am Nic,” I say as I sit with my back to his back .

“And so am I,” he says. “Your woman is in need of your help to get her out of captivity .”

“She’s being held against her will?” The idea makes me furious at her father. How could he do that to his own daughter ?

“She is. She is being well cared for, though. I had a very hard time making my way to get to you. It took every dime I had just to fly here. She told me you would help me in the financial department if I could get you to her. Is that so?” he asks me .

For a brief moment, I feel uneasy about the man. But then I quickly realize even if I simply lose money to the man it’s still worth the gamble to get her back .

“I will reward you greatly for this. Tell me where she is and I’ll go and get her,” I say as I tap the water bottle on the table with a nervousness I’ve never felt the likes of before .

“It won’t be that easy. She’s locked away very well. I’ve tried myself to get her out of the castle but have been blocked each time. That’s when she asked me to come to America to get you .”

“She’s in a castle in another country?” I ask as I find a rage building inside me against her father .

“She is in Greece. Thessaloniki to be exact. Her room is at the top of an abandoned castle. The window has a wooden shutter that can be opened. You just need to figure out how you will get her out of it,” he says .

“That’s the only way for her to get out?” I ask as I rack my brain as to what I can do to get her free. “And how far up are we talking ?”

“I’m not good with that concept. It’s at the top of a freaking huge castle. Take a guess,” he says with an exaggerated huff .

“I need something that will allow me to get up to her without being seen. Is it hard to get on the grounds, undetected?” I ask as I’m sure it must be .

“Very,” he says, reinforcing my thought. “I might be able to sneak you in at night. To the grounds I mean. I can’t sneak you into the castle. There are people watching that entrance all the time. There is only one way in and out .”

“A commercial flight is just about the best way to get to Greece. If I take my jet, they’ll know I’m onto her and her father will move her before I can get there,” I tell him. “I’ll set up tickets for tomorrow. You can go to a small hotel, I’ll pay for, for the night. I’m going to leave a thousand dollars on the table. Pick it up, quickly. This is New York and people are quick to grab what’s not nailed down, especially cash. Stay out of sight as much as possible. I’ll call you with all of the information ”

“I look forward to hearing from you. And for what it’s worth, she never let me touch her. She said she belonged only to you , Nic .”

Taking the cash from my money clip, I sigh as I hear what he’s said. It stirs me deeply. She’s waiting for me. She knows I am the man for her. Then it hits me as to why he’d say such a thing. “Why would that even come up ?”

“Her doctor sent me to have sex with her. To get her over you. I had to give her ecstasy for three days straight and was locked in the room with her all that time. And she never allowed me to touch her. It was rough on the poor girl. I can promise you that. But I never laid a hand on her, other than making her take the pills. The doctor saw it wasn’t working and took me out of there. But she told me all about you and her while we were trapped in that room. It broke my heart that anyone would tear you two apart .”

“It broke mine too. But as soon as I find her, it will be healed again. Thank you, Nic. I’ll be in touch very soon. And you will get an enormous reward once I have her safely in my arms.” Placing the money on the table, I get up and leave .

My mind is racing with the great news and I find myself jogging down the sidewalk as I pull my phone out and call my driver to pick me up in a nearby alley so no one will see me getting into the car .

I will have her soon and everything will be okay again !

NATASHA

The man who was sent to make me get over Nic must have gone on a mission for me by what I’ve heard from my father and the others who are talking in the castle hallway. Just outside of my room, I can hear them talking about him being missing .

There’s talk of moving me which has me afraid. When my father walks in, I steady myself so no emotion shows on my face. “Hi, Dad. I’ll be good. Can I go home now ?”

He laughs as he shakes his head. “Tasha, you’re not fooling anyone. Now I need to ask you a question and you will tell me the truth, young lady .”

I freeze as I know what he’s about to ask and I don’t know if I can lie to the man. “Yes, sir. I always tell you the truth, Dad. You know that. Even things I don’t want you to know, I’ve told you. What is your question ?”

His eyes bore into mine as he takes me by both arms and holds them, tightly. I think it’s to measure my heart rate so I keep that in mind as I make my body do what it has to in order for him to believe my lie .

“Natasha Greenwell, did you get that man, who was sent in here to help you get over that horrible man, to go to New York?” he asks as he keeps eye contact with me .

“No,” I say as I look back into his eyes with the same expression on my face .

For the longest amount of time ever, my father stares into my eyes then says, “Then where has Nic gone to ?”

I shrug. “How should I know ?”

“Because you two talked, extensively,” he says .

I’m not sure how he knows that as I whispered everything I said to him about my Nic. He had no clothing on to hide a wire. Up until now, I wasn’t even sure he went to New York for me. But since he’s missing, I assume he did .

“Did he tell you about anyone he knew or might be seeing that would have him disappearing overnight?” he asks me as he lets me go .

I want to let out a sigh of relief but know that would look suspicious so I keep it in as I turn and walk to sit in the chair at the table. “He and I did not talk about him or his life. And on that subject, tell me why you thought it would be okay to try to force a man on me ?”

Dad turns and looks at me with a crease in his forehead. “Your doctor is the one who came up with that. He didn’t notify me or ask if he could do such a thing. I’m not happy with him about it. As such, he’s been terminated .”

I gasp because that means something terrible when my father says it. “ Dad , no !”

His expression changes to one of humor as he laughs. “Not that kind of terminated. Fired. I fired him. No killing was done .”

With relief, I sit back. “Thank God! Dad, this really is too much. I know how you feel about Nic and I promise to stay away from him. You’ve set me back so far in school, I’ve missed my graduation .”

He interrupts me as he points his finger at me. “You need to worry about things other than that. You will graduate some time. What’s more important, your life or that diploma ?”

“My life is not in danger,” I say as I roll my eyes. “Nic would never hurt me, Dad. And if I told him I didn’t want to see him he’d leave me alone. He has tons of other women he can spend his time with .”

“Well, he hasn’t seen fit to spend time with any in the last thirteen months. He’s obsessed with you,” he says as he takes a seat on the small sofa in the corner of the room .

“You’re having him followed or what?” I ask as I think about what he’s said. Nic hasn’t been messing around. He’s waiting for me !

My father nods. “Of course .”

Then it hits me that even if Nic manages to get to me and get me out of here, we will be pulled apart again and the overwhelming feeling of defeat takes me over. My body falls forward as I fall out of the chair .

All I can see is blackness, then I feel my body lifted and I’m placed on the little bed. “Tasha !”

I can’t seem to open my eyes. My body is limp as my father lifts my arm up and it falls back down. I can hear him, yelling at me to wake up. I can feel his hand as he slaps at my cheeks. But I can’t open my eyes or talk .

I hear him slam out of the room and into the connected bathroom. He comes back and I feel cold water splash all over my face and chest and sputter as it brings me back. “Dad,” I croak, weakly .

My body begins to shake and he stands there, watching me. “Tasha, what’s wrong with you ?”

I hear a knock at the door and my lunch is brought in. The woman says something in Greek and my father’s face goes ashen. “Take the tea away and bring her some without that in it,” he orders her .

She hesitates as she places the tray on the table, then says some more to him in her language. He nods and runs his hand over his forehead. I look at my father and ask, “What’s she saying , Dad ?”

“The drug they give you in the tea three times a day is making you dependent on it. If you stop cold turkey, you will get the tremors and have seizures.” He looks at me with a certain amount of sadness in his eyes, mixed with a touch of guilt .

“You’ve had me drugged and now my body is dependent on it?” I ask him as I glare at him .

He doesn’t answer me as he sends the woman away, leaving the drugged tea for me to consume. “It’s not that I meant to do that. I thought you or he would move on. I didn’t think it would take this damn long, Tasha. I’ll get you into rehab. I’m sorry .”

“Sorry?” I ask as I try to sit up. My head is swimming and pounding as he hands me the fucking tea .

I knock the glass out of his hand, spilling the drink all over his white shirt. “Tasha !”

“Get the fuck away from me,” I tell him with a low and even tone .

“Now, you listen …”

I cut him off. “Don’t. Just don’t. You’ve done something horrible to me and I will not lay in this bed and let you do one more bad thing to me. You may have done this in a misguided sense of parenting but you’ve done something terrible to me. You’re done. Do you understand me ?”

The way he’s looking at me, through hooded eyes that show remorse as it sinks in what he’s done, has me thinking I may finally get to go home. Not that I have a fucking place to live anymore as I know they’ve thrown my things out of the dorm .

No one waits for thirteen months to see if anyone will show back up. And Dani was most likely spirited away too as Dad let that cat out of the bag back in Nic’s office that fateful day that changed my fucking life .

“I’m a fucking drug addict because of you.” I turn my back to him and hear him leave my room .

I feel sick to my stomach and my head is throbbing and I know that tea would’ve stopped this from happening but I’ll be damned if another drop of that shit goes down my throat .

I made it through three days of being fed ecstasy without letting it get to me. I can overcome this too. I have to !

Nic may be coming for me. He may be on a plane right now for all I know. If he does get to me, I’ll be sick and weak and in no condition to fly. And maybe that’s exactly what my father meant to happen .

As I lie here and think about everything, I think either my father planned things out very well or half-assed. Either way, it makes no difference. He’s made me sick and I am done with the man .

Hours have passed since my father left the room. I’ve thrown up four times and feel awful. I had the flu once and it was about this bad. I can get through this. I know I can. Nic fills my fevered dreams and I have no doubt I can fight this for him .

I hear the door open and keep my burning eyes closed as I hear my father’s voice, “See, it’s pretty bad .”

“It is but I have something that will help her,” I hear a woman say .

A prick stings the inside of my elbow as she presses a needle into my vein there. I want to pull away but lack the strength to. “No more drugs,” I whisper .

Her hand moves over my forehead. “Not drugs, honey. Just a mix of powerful vitamins and nutrients to help you. No more drugs. And I’ll set up an IV drip to hydrate your body .”

Rolling over, I see my father’s red-rimmed eyes as he reaches out and touches my cheek. “I’m sorry and I’m taking you home. As soon as you’re safe to travel. This is over. I am done. I am a fool but I know when I’ve gone too far. I never meant for this to happen to you. I swear it .”

A tear runs down my face as I watch him get on his knees beside my bed. “Dad?” I have to stop talking as a lump forms in my throat .

“Don’t talk. Just rest and let the vitamin mix do its magic. I’m sorry. I’ll make this up to you. I promise. I’m taking you home to your mother. We’ll take care of you until you’re all better,” he tells me .

I don’t want to go to their house. I want to go to Nic’s. But I’m not about to try to argue. I’m going back to America. Nantucket isn’t that far from New York and I can get to Nic then .

The mixture is working as I no longer feel the need to vomit. Sleep invades my thoughts and I drift off, knowing soon I’ll be back to where I can get to him. To the man I love .

NICHOLAI

Finally, after ten hours in the air, we are landing in Greece. Night has fallen so Nic and I can travel by car to the castle where Natasha is. He’s had his brother make a purchase of a grappling hook and rope so I can climb up the castle wall to get her .

I’ve never done that type of climbing before but he’s told me it’s easy. I hope he’s right. I have to come back down that rope with Natasha and I don’t want us both to fall to our death or get hurt badly .

“Thank goodness the darkness will cover us, huh Nicholai?” he asks as we wait in line to exit the plane .

I have on black clothing to help me stay hidden in the darkness and the stewardess looks me over as I walk up to the exit. “You look like a man on a mission,” she says .

Not knowing exactly what to say, I find Nic answering for me. “He’s into that goth crap. I tell him always he is a fool .”

She eyes me and nods. “You look like a man who would look more at home in expensive business suits .”

I shake my head and smile as she is more than right in both ways and I find that amusing. “See you on the trip back home, gentlemen,” she says as we leave the plane .

Neither of us will be getting back on any commercial airline. Nic will stay in Greece, of course. I will be in hiding with Natasha until my jet comes for us. From there we will decide where to go while things cool down. I’m not about to take her back to New York just to have her father steal her away from me again. We must plan and perhaps negotiate with the man to get him to see we will be together, come hell or high water .

Climbing into a cab, we head to Nic’s home. Even in the dark of night, I can tell the scenery around us is beautiful. The homes we pass are brilliantly lit up and one family is having a gathering on their front lawn .

“Everyone seems so happy here,” I say as I look around .

“Generally, yes,” Nic agrees .

“My family will welcome you with open arms. Many sisters I have, so expect to get a pinch on the ass or two,” he tells me with a laugh .

“I think I can handle them, Nic. Thank you again for what you’re doing. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you doing all of this. Before I leave here, I will make sure your bank account looks nothing like it does now.” I pat him on his leg and he smiles .

“You know, I’ve been thinking about that. Nicholai, I want no reward from you. What’s happened to her is a crime. I merely want to see her leave with you, safely and happily. That will be payment enough.” He pats my leg. “Think of it as my gift .”

I nod but I will give the man a reward for his help. Maybe he won’t know about it until he checks his bank account and I am long gone. But I will reward him .

We pull to a stop on a hillside and get out in front of a modest home. “This house holds how many?” I ask as I look it over and grab my one bag from the truck .

“Fifteen. We are to the roof in this place. Do not worry. We reserve a private room for our guests,” he leads me to the door where we are met by three other young men .

“Nic! Where have you been?” one calls out as they hold the door open. “Many have been coming to look for you .”

“Damn,” he says under his breath. “That is no good .”

“Why is that?” I ask as he takes me inside .

He shakes his head and introduces me. “This is Nicholai. Remember I told you to get that rope and hook?” He looks at one of the men who shrugs. “Don’t tell me you don’t have it !”

“I don’t have it,” the guy says, sending me into a worried and tense state .

“Where is it you would be using such a thing, Nic?” a woman, obviously, his mother, asks as she comes into the room. She stops when she sees me and wipes her hands on her apron. “And your friend ?”

“This is Nicholai, Momma.” He looks at me. “My Mamma .”

Her arms go wide and I move in to hug her. “Nice to meet you .”

“You call me, Momma. Everyone does. Come and eat. Food is on the table,” she says as she pulls me along with her to another room .

We go through it and I find several children sitting and talking over a board game. All eyes come to me. Nic shouts, “He is my friend. You call him Nicholai.” He looks at me. “These are some of my nieces and nephews .”

We go out of a door and are outside at the back of the home. The yard is lit up. Every tree has white lights wrapped around it, illuminating the large yard. Three of the trees are olive trees and the smell is amazing .

“This is lovely,” I say, bringing a smile to his mother’s lips .

“You are single, yes?” she asks as she looks at my left hand .

“He is currently unwed, Mamma,” Nic tells her. “But he is not single. He is quite taken .”

She looks me over. “I happen to have some lovely daughters who are single. If you’d like to do a little window shopping before you make a wifely purchase, you are welcome to .”

“Mamma!” Nic chastises her as I grin .

“What?” she shouts as she throws her hands in the air. “A man should shop around before he makes a choice that big. Marriage is forever you know. Go tell your sisters a gentleman is here.” She sends off another guy and I find myself laughing as he runs with his mother’s words .

“Thank you, Mamma,” I tell her as I take the seat she’s offered me. “I have done a bit more than dabble with other women. The one I’m picking up here is the one for me. It’s been over a year since we’ve seen each other or even talked. And my heart pines for her. No one can even come close to taking my attention. Sorry .”

She pats my back as she begins placing food on a plate then she places it in front of me. “Tell me what has you two lovebirds apart for so long .”

“Her father. He’s against our union,” I tell her as she pours a large glass of wine .

I haven’t touched a drop of liquor since that morning she was taken away from me. I thought it unfair to drown my sorrows when she was God knows where. But seeing as there seems to be nothing else to drink and this is the beginning of what I hope will be a fantastic night, I indulge in the sweet liquid that tingles in my mouth .

She watches me as I take the first sip. “Delicious,” I say, making her clap her hands and laugh .

“Yes! My family has made their own wine for generations. We have tried, quite unsuccessfully, to get our own company. We are not a family of business people. Food and drink we are great at. Business, no.” She points to a grape leaf which is expertly wrapped around something. “You taste that. It’s unlike anything you’ve ever tasted, I promise you .”

Picking it up, I take a bite and find the meat inside melts in my mouth . “Ummm .”

She nods. “Good, right ?”

“Great!” I say, then take another bite. “You wouldn’t want to come back to America with me and be my cook, would you ?”

She laughs and claps her hands as I hear the sound of women coming out to join us. “And who have we here?” one of the tall, slender brunettes ask as three of them come out .

I stand up. “I am Nicholai Grimm.” I make a bow and they giggle a little .

Then I find them moving into the seats around me as Nic tries to shoo them away. “He’s unavailable .”

“I see no ring,” one of them says as she takes my left hand .

I pull it up and kiss the top of hers, making her flush with most likely an unexpected heat between her legs. “But I can assure you that I am very much taken. You will meet the woman I am hopelessly in love with soon, I hope .”

Her eyes move to Nic’s. “Who is she ?”

“She’s from America,” he answers .

“Yes!” his mother shouts. “You were going to tell us your story, Nicholai .”

Suddenly everyone is sitting around the enormous table and staring at me. “My story is boring,” I say as I look at each and every one of them as they seem to be waiting with baited breath .

Nic makes an attempt to save me. “I assure you, the story he has to tell is X-rated. I’ve heard it. It’s not for the faint of heart .”

One of his sister’s hands moves over my leg and I quickly take it and shake my head at her. “Naughty, naughty .”

She wrinkles her nose and says, “Come on, tell us your story, Nicholai. We love a good X-rated story .”

I give Nic a wink. “I’ll church it up a bit .”

He nods. “You do that, Nicholai. My mother is a widow. She has to go to bed alone tonight. No need to heat her up .”

His mother rubs her hands together. “Oh good. Tell us what has you in our town and our country for that matter .”

So, I sit back with my glass of wine and start the tale that is the story of me and Natasha and how fate is against us. Eyes go wide and some have to wipe away tears but in the end, I see compassion on every face .

“I tell you what, Nicholai,” Nic’s mother says. “You and she should stay in this town. We are a close-knit bunch of people. No one will be able to do a thing to either of you .”

Nic’s eyes go big as he adds, “You could buy the enormous home that is on the hill just on the outskirts of town. My momma could be your cook then .”

“We can keep the house for you and your beloved,” one of his sisters says .

I can see them all so happy to help. It fills me with energy and I wonder if Natasha would like a life here in Greece. I have no doubts I could get a business going with their wine and food .

“I will speak with my princess about it.” Then I think about her being held captive here and wonder if that would sour the place for her. “But her reasons for being here may have her wanting to leave this beautiful place. Her happiness is all that matters to me .”

I receive awws from all and find that endearing. “You are a prize, Nicholai,” another one of his sisters tells me as she wipes away a tear .

“I am not. But my Natasha is. And maybe you all could help me go get her from that castle I told you about,” I say .

Cheers ring out and everyone jumps up and runs to the house. Nic grabs my arm. “Come on, Nicholai. We are going to storm the castle to rescue your princess !”

My heart is pounding as it seems his whole family is with me. We walk down the street in a horde of people and I find others asking what we are doing and when they’re told of the rescue mission, they join in. Before I know it, there is the equivalent of a small army and we are all on our way to the end of the road where the castle awaits us in complete darkness .

Nic is at my side as I say, “There are no lights on .”

“They have none,” he says as we continue to walk .

I’m furious she’s been kept in such a state yet her father sees me as unfit to be with her. The man takes the cake and I will not allow Natasha to stop me from lashing out at him .

He will end his tyranny over her. I will see to that. My princess will never be hidden away again. Or her father will have more to deal with than he ever saw coming !

NATASHA

The young woman doctor my father found is with us as we get onto the FBI’s jet. It’s early evening and he says we’ll be home in a matter of about ten hours .

I’m lying on the bed in the back of the cabin, the IV is being started up again after they had to stop the fluids as they transported me to the airport. I’m holding my cards close to my chest as my mind has been a whirlwind of how I will get back to my Nic. My plan is to call him as soon as I get near a phone .

Dad did say Nic hadn’t moved on and hadn’t been messing around so I have a ton of hope he’ll want to talk to me. We can figure out how to be together if we can talk. I just know we can .

Dad opens the door to the tiny bedroom. “How’s she doing ?”

“Fine,” the doctor says as she pulls the blanket up to my neck. “You can tell the pilot to take off. I’ll be right here with her.” She pulls the straps to make sure they’re tight. She uses them to strap me to the bed for the takeoff .

There’s a chair in the room too with a seat belt I suppose she’ll take while we take off. My father comes to me and kisses my forehead. “You and I will have a talk once we’re up in the air and can move around freely .”

I look at him as he turns to leave and feel compelled to say something, “Dad?” He stops and turns back to look at me. “I forgive you .”

With a nod, he turns back around and leaves the room. I watch the doctor wipe one of her eyes then she takes the seat and puts on the seat belt as the captain comes onto the speaker, telling us to put on our seat belts and get ready for takeoff .

“He’s not so bad,” she says .

I suppose the fluids are helping me regain brain activity as I suddenly realize she’s not from Greece. She’s American !

“How do you know my father?” I ask and watch her head fall to her chest .

Her mouth stays closed, though. The slight shake of her head tells me there is more between them. “You should rest .”

“You should tell me,” I say as the plane begins to move .

We wobble back and forth as it taxis to the runway. She won’t look at me and I have a feeling I know exactly why. I watch her bite at her lower lip. Then she looks at me. “It’s not for me to say .”

“He’s asked you to keep a secret?” I ask as I feel the plane moving faster as it gets on the runway .

She merely nods and I know my father is having an affair with the woman. She’s young, maybe thirty. She’s pretty too. Dark hair falls to her shoulders in a straight, glossy sheet. Her brown eyes look kind and nurturing .

Mom has blue eyes and blonde hair, like myself. Mom is a distant type of woman with little going on in her life. She’s never worked a day in her life. She tends to her flower beds she has all around the house. The house she and my father have lived in since I was four years old .

My father’s job was often the excuse for him barely being around. I understood he was a very busy man. It was also a thing that was ingrained in me that my father’s job was extremely dangerous and he didn’t like to talk about his work, so I was not to ask where he’d been at all. Neither did Mom .

And as I watch the woman who sits in front of me, not looking at me, instead she’s staring at the floor, I get the reality into my brain. My father uses women. He has high expectations for any man who is to be in my life but he, himself, treats women poorly .

Perhaps he has no idea what real love feels like. Maybe that’s why he acted like I was a little idiot when I cried and begged him not to take me away from Nic. He must think there is no such thing as love. Just like Nic used to think .

I move my eyes off the poor woman who must be feeling shame. “I’ll never judge you,” I say as we level off and the pilot comes on, telling us we’re free to move about the plane .

She takes her seat belt off and my father walks through the door. “I need a drink,” she tells him as she leaves the room .

His eyes stay focused on me. He’s very good at pretending nothing is going on between them. Moving to the edge of the bed, he takes a seat on it and rests his hand on my blanket-covered leg. “I want to talk to you about when we get back home .”

“What?” I ask as I think he might be about to tell me he and Mom are separated or something like that .

“I want you to know, I will have the house phone bugged. If you call that man’s cell or office, the FBI will know immediately and I will take action against the man. I don’t want to cause him harm but I will, to protect you .”

“I lied,” I say, suddenly .

“About what?” he says as he looks confused .

“About Paul,” I tell him, coming clean for the first time about what happened when I was a teenager .

“Don’t utter that piece of shit’s name, Tasha,” he says between gritted teeth .

“He was not a piece of shit. I was,” I tell him and watch the color leave his face .

“Don’t say that,” he says with a frown. His forehead creases and he looks as if he’s devastated .

I have to get the truth out. I can’t allow it to fester inside of me any longer. “Here’s the truth, Dad. I watched Paul and Sandy’s kids for them. That part you know. What you don’t know is that I saw Sandy treat her husband, Paul, like dog shit on a daily basis. I saw her taking off with other men while her husband was at work. I saw it all and I saw a man who was in the lowest spot in his life .”

“Don’t,” my father says as he looks at the blanket and nervously picks at a loose thread on it .

“It was me who seduced him. It was me who made all the first moves on the man. I put his hand on my breast. I pulled his dick out of his pants and I put my mouth on it. I did that all on my own .”

My father stands up as he shakes his head. “No! He made you do that! He made you, Tasha! You’re looking back and you’re blaming yourself, but it was him who did that! You were only sixteen. He deserved what I did to him! He did !”

“He was a broken man and I took advantage of him and what’s worse is I knew exactly what I was doing. And then you came to pick me up and caught the first time I put my mouth on him and you nearly beat him to death,” I level my eyes on him as he seems to be coming undone .

“No!” he shouts. “Tasha, no! He made you do that to him. And that fucker Grimm made you do those awful things with him. You didn’t want to and you know it !”

I shake my head. “I did want it. I watched an awesome show with a woman and a man and it was beyond amazing. I want it. I want that man and I want that excitement in my life. I want to feel it all, Dad. Understand it or don’t. I don’t care .”

“Natasha Greenwell, I did not raise you to be this way. I did not raise a sexual deviant,” he shouts at me .

“Am I deviant, Dad?” I ask as I watch his color come and go. He may throw up and I wouldn’t blame him. He’s the one who’s insinuated himself into my sex life and I can’t feel sorry for how he’s taking the reality that is me .

He gets off my bed and sits in the chair as he breathes hard. “You’ve really been down a hard road. You need help, baby girl .”

“Dad, all I need is Nic. He is really all I need. It’s been thirteen months and he’s still all I can think about. That has to be because we have something real. I don’t expect you to understand but I do expect you to back the fuck off us. Actually, I demand you do that .”

His face is pale as he looks at me. “You are demanding me to let that son of a bitch do to you anything he wants ?”

“He does nothing to me I don’t want .”

With a nod, he gets up. “No,” he simply says .

So, I pull out my big gun. “You sure about that? Because I’m pretty positive that woman who you are calling a doctor is your lover .”

Quickly, his eyes go narrow as he finally looks at me. “Did she tell you that? She’s a liar !”

“No, she didn’t tell me that. I just found it odd that you found an American woman in Greece to treat my drug addiction, an addiction you caused. Two and two came together. It’s much easier now that my mind is clearing,” I tell him and by the way his body is shaking, I know I’m right .

“You know nothing, Tasha,” he says as spit drips off his frothing mouth .

“I know this. Your reign over me is over. Better to accept it, Dad. Fighting me will be a losing battle .”

The door slams against the wall as he throws it open and leaves me alone. My steady heartbeat is confirmation to my brain. His rule is over and my conscience is finally clear about Paul .

The truth feels good !

NICHOLAI

As we get to the dark castle, the first man to get to the door throws it open and shines his flashlight into the darkness. “We're here for the princess!” he calls out .

There is no answer and Nic and I exchange a look. “Where are the people you said guard this place?” I ask him .

“I have no idea. I swear to you there are always three men who guard this door,” he says as we move forward with the large group of people, armed with flashlights .

We go inside the castle to find it empty. Not a thing in the whole place tells me anyone was ever there. There is no bed in the room he said she was in. There isn’t even a lock on the door as he said there was .

“Nic, how could you do this?” I ask him as his relatives and townspeople look on .

“I swear, Nicholai. She was here before I left to come get you.” He falls to his knees. “I swear it to you !”

“Well, where is she now?” I ask as my hand twitches to knock the shit out of the liar .

“I do not know,” is his stupid reply .

“What am I to do with you, Nic?” I ask as my mind goes into a fevered state with being fooled by the man .

This will not end well for him, I expect .

The Beast Part Six

N ICHOLAI

The steady sound of the plane’s engine soothes me as I ride back to America on the first commercial flight I could get out of Greece. I managed to rein in my rage at the young man I thought at first had duped me into believing I would find my Natasha .

One of his brothers got between us before I could lay a hand on the man and we went to get a drink at the nearest bar. I settled down quickly and knew I should get back home to New York .

With the knowledge Natasha is no longer in Greece, my hopes for finding her are falling away, a bit at a time. I think her father will make sure to keep her on the move so I will never be able to catch up to her .

I also think the shrink I saw might be right. How long am I to wait? Forever ?

I shake my head and sip on the Scotch I had the stewardess bring me. She’s been eyeing me and I know I could take her in the bathroom and have my way with her. But every time I look her way, I see my Natasha, standing behind her .

Her ghost seems to follow me wherever I go. She’s a part of me and even as I think about how I should move on, I simply can’t. The hope I felt about finally finding her has fallen inside of me. Like a vacuum, it sucks up my emotions. I feel as if I’m perpetually falling and there is no end in sight .

Pulling out my phone, I look at a picture she took of us that morning, the morning after our first night together. After we’d gotten ready to go to work. She labeled it, the first day of our new life together. “Who’s she?” a woman’s voice comes from behind me .

I turn to find an older woman leaning up in her seat. “She’s a woman I’m searching for. She was taken from me about thirteen months ago .”

“She’s gorgeous. You two look great together. Was she kidnapped?” she asks as she looks a little harder at the picture .

I nod. “By her father. He’s an FBI agent. He’s managed to keep her just out of my reach .”

“An FBI agent?” she asks then seems to be thinking .

“Yes, he was investigating my company. My family owns a weapons company. He didn’t want her involved with me.” I put my phone away .

“A weapons company?” she asks then her eyes go narrow. “His name doesn’t happen to be Norman Greenwell, does it ?”

“Norman Greenwell is his name,” I answer her with more than a bit of surprise. “You know him ?”

“I know of him. Personally, we’ve never met. I’d love to meet the man, though. I have an earful I’d like to give him. He’s stringing my daughter along. He has been for the last couple of years. He keeps telling her he’s on the verge of leaving his wife for her. My brother is also in the FBI, that’s how Greenwell met my daughter,” she tells me, making the wheels spin in my head .

“The man cheats on his wife and has the nerve to judge me?” I ask myself out loud .

“He’s a piece of work, that man,” she says. “I came all the way to Greece to finally confront him as my brother told me he was going there to deal with something and he had my daughter with him when he left New York. I hopped on the first flight out but he and she were gone when I got there .”

“I came for his daughter. And now I suppose what the young man who came for me told me, was true. Only I got there just a little too late to get to her. Did your brother tell you where they were going to go after Greece?” I ask and find myself crossing my fingers as I wait for her answer .

“As a matter of fact, I do know right where they’re going. Nantucket,” she tells me, sending sparks of hope shooting all through me again .

“To where his wife lives?” I ask .

“My brother told me, he’d talked to Norman and that he had some personal business to see to in Nantucket then he’d be back in New York. I have to find my daughter and open her eyes to the man. You see, I’ve found two more women he’s been messing with. My daughter thinks she’s the only one. She’s blocked my calls as she wants me to leave them alone. But I’m not about to do that .”

“Tenacious, aren’t you?” I ask as I think about going right up to their house and knocking on their door once I get back .

“I am. You see, my daughter stands to inherit quite a chunk of money when her paternal grandfather passes away. I think that man is using her for the money she will have one day. Loretta is a doctor and has put that aside to be at that man’s beck and call. A thing I never saw coming from her. She’s too smart to be dealing with a man like that. Once I show her the pictures of him with other women, I hope she’ll see reason and come back home with me .”

“Where does she live now?” I ask as I can surely find the man there if I don’t find Natasha at his home with his wife .

“He keeps her in various hotels. She has no real place to live. Her life is completely uprooted by the man. I have to say, I’ve never hated anyone but I hate that man,” she says .

“Maybe you and I could work together. Your name is?” I ask as I take a pen and paper from the back of the seat in front of me .

“I’m Stacy Holland. And I’d love to help you if you could help me,” she says. “And you are ?”

“I am Nicholai Grimm.” I watch her face go pale and wonder why that is .

“Grimm?” she looks at me and reaches out to touch my face. “Are you related to Nicholas Grimm ?”

“I’m his son,” I say as I find it even more surprising that she knows my father .

“I went to school with your father. He and I were high school sweethearts. My father was in the military and when he was sent to Germany, we all had to move with him. I lost touch with Nicholas as my letters to him started getting returned to me. I had no idea why that was. It broke my heart as he and I had planned on me coming back to New York when I turned eighteen. It was merely three years from the time I left. Only he must’ve moved on. We were just kids but that felt like real love. To me at least. I suppose he’s doing well now .”

“Not really. He is married to my mother. It’s a shell of a marriage, though. He’s not what you’d expect, I’m afraid. But it’s interesting that you say you two were sweethearts. Did the man ever tell you that he loved you?” I ask .

She nods. “We’d say it all the time to one another. That’s why it hurt so much when my letters were returned, unopened .”

“He’s never uttered those words to me. My father is harsh and cruel at times. And he doesn’t believe in love. He too is against me and Natasha. If I ever do find her, we have a battle with both of our fathers that is sure to erupt .”

“He’s never told you, his own son, that he loves you?” she asks and shakes her head. “He is most definitely not the same person he was all those years ago .”

“Not at all, it seems. I’d bring you to see him, only I wouldn’t want you to deal with the man he’s become, Stacy,” I tell her and watch as she nods, sadly .

“No, I’d rather have my memory of him when we were young and in love. So, let’s put that little discussion away and make a plan of how the hell we can help each other accomplish these goals we have. Seems we’re both chasing after the same man .”

It seems we are and it seems this woman has knowledge, I desperately need !

NATASHA

The fluids and vitamins have helped me tremendously and I can walk on my own up to my parents’ home in Nantucket. I’ve yet to get anywhere near a phone so I can call Nic but I think it’s about to happen for me .

My father is eerily quiet as we approach his home. Another car came and took the doctor, who came back from Greece with us, away. I asked him several questions about her that he never bothered answering .

His hand touches my arm just before we get to the door. “Promise me you won’t hurt your mother with your stupid notion about that woman, Tasha .”

And just like that, I see I have more leverage than I realized I had. “Sure, Dad. And you butt out of my personal life too .”

He shakes his head and I shake mine. Then his eyes go narrow as he says, “Tasha, I can make shit happen. Don’t fuck with me .”

And just like that, I realize my father has more reach than I do. So, I give in but only a bit as I say, “I’ll keep my mouth shut. No reason to hurt Mom .”

“No, there’s not. Your perceptions are unfounded, anyway. I love your mother,” he says as he unlocks the door .

It’s early in the morning and by how quiet the house is, I think Mom’s still asleep. Dad pushes a code into the alarm system then closes the door and reactivates it. “You seem to be locking us in , Dad .”

“I am. I need rest and I need to know you’re going nowhere. I’ve changed the code to the alarm. The one you knew is no longer. If the wrong code is entered, the alarm will go off. If any window is opened, the alarm will go off. So, don’t even try it, Tasha.” He smiles as he walks away from me. “Go to your old room and get some rest .”

I don’t need to go anywhere, anyway. I just need to get to the phone. He told me he bugged the phone and would intercept any call to Nic’s office and cell phone. But he doesn’t know the home phone at Nic’s house. Technically, neither do I. But I do know how to call information and get that number. All I have to do is let someone in Nic’s staff know where I am and he will come for me .

Making my way to my old bedroom, I go inside and find it neat and tidy. Mom’s been keeping it clean for me, it seems. When I open the closet, I find my clothes that were in the dorm room. Dad must’ve gotten all my things. At least they weren’t thrown away .

I search through the things in the room and find the naughty negligees and masks Nic sent to me are not here. That’s an expected move on my father’s part .

My ears prick at the sound of my mother and father talking as they come down the hallway. “Is she okay?” I hear her ask .

My door opens and Mom pulls me into a big hug. “ Hi , Mom .”

“Oh, baby,” she says as she squeezes me. “You’ve lost weight.” She holds me back and looks me over then frowns at my father .

He looks a little sheepish then his cell phone rings and he leaves my bedroom to answer it. I look at my mother and want to cry and beg her to help me. “Mom, I need your help .”

One finger goes to her lips and she gives me a wink. “I’m already on it, baby girl .”

My heart pounds as I’ve finally found the one person who can help me. Mom hasn’t always been proactive in my raising. She’s always maintained that my father is head of the household and his word is the final one. But this time things seem different .

Maybe she’s had some concerns about his faithfulness and is now looking at leaving him. I’d never blame her for doing that .

We hear Dad go into his office as that door slams on the other side of the house. “Wonder what has him so mad,” I say as Mom closes my door .

“Don’t know and don’t care. You see, I’ve been called by a man who wants to give you a job as an intern. It’s in the publishing industry. You’re minoring in publications so it’s a perfect fit for you. I’ve called the college and you can start your classes back up. You and I are going to New York, courtesy of a man by the name of James Hawthorn. He’s a bigwig with Hawthorn Publications .”

I bite my lip as I don’t know how to tell my mother that man is the one man I was told to stay away from by Nic. “Mom, why did he say he was interested in me becoming an intern there ?”

“He said one of your professors recommended you and when he saw your excellent grades, he knew you were the one he wanted for the internship. To sweeten the deal, he added in a two bedroom New York apartment for you .”

“Dad will never allow it,” I say as I sit on the end of my old bed .

“I’m not going to take no for an answer. When I found out you were coming home, I called James and told him the good news. He’s in town. He wants to meet with you,” she says as she smiles widely at me .

“Mom, that’s too soon. I’m weak and look like hell,” I say as some kind of excuse not to see the man Nic said I should be polite to but get the hell away from as quickly as I could .

My door flies open and my father looks agitated as he says, “I fucking have to get my ass to New York. There’s been a break in the case against the Grimms. I’m entrusting our daughter to you, Natalie .”

“Good. She’s fine with me, Norman.” She gives me a look that frightens me a little. “You go take care of your business and leave her to me .”

“What kind of thing did you find on their company, Dad?” I ask as I find myself growing worried about Nic .

“Never mind that. Get your head off that fucking man. He’s going to end up in prison anyway.” His words stun me and I find myself feeling more afraid than I’ve ever been .

“Dad, no!” I shout as he turns to leave the room .

I jump up and Mom grabs me, pulling me back to her. “There’s nothing you can do about the things Nicholai Grimm has gotten himself into. You have a new path now with this other company. That company wasn’t a thing you’d learn a damn thing you’ve been to school for anyway. Now take a shower and get yourself cleaned up. James wants to meet with you as soon as possible .”

She leaves me and I find my body shaking. Nic might go to prison !

NICHOLAI

Turning my phone back on as I walk through the airport in New York, I start to call my driver and find I’ve missed not one but fifteen calls from my father. I call my driver first to get him on his way to me and go to sit in a small café to wait for him and call my father back .

“Nicholai!” he answers. “Where the hell are you ?”

“I’m in New York. I just got off a plane. What’s the matter?” I ask as he sounds more stressed than usual .

“Have you seen the news?” he asks me .

There’s a small television above the counter and I see CNN is on and my fucking picture is in the left-hand corner of it. My heart freezes as I read the caption running underneath it. ‘FBI seeks Nicholai Grimm for questioning in weapons deal after informant comes forward with damning information about the man .’

“Father, what’s going on?” I ask as I suddenly feel cold .

“Get to our home, Nicholai. I have our attorneys on their way. This information just came out a few hours ago. I need to know this, were you actually in Greece ?”

“How did you know that?” I ask as I see a couple of security officers looking my way .

“Because that’s where the informant said you went to deliver some of our technology to another man who was taking it to some very undesirable people. Tell me that’s not true,” he begs me .

“It’s not true. I was there to get Natasha. That’s all I went there for. Someone is lying to the FBI, Father .”

“I hope so. I hope we can discount what the informant has said. If not, I see you spending time in prison. You are officially discharged from your position as CEO of our company. I had no choice. We cannot afford to be shut down by the government for what you’re accused of .”

My heart is pounding as I see five men in black suits and dark sunglasses coming toward me. “They’re here for me, Father. I have to go now. Bring the lawyers to wherever it is they’re going to take me .”

“Surrender to them but say nothing,” he orders me and I end the call .

Putting my hands behind my head, I tell the men who are approaching me, “I am Nicholai Grimm, the man you are seeking. I am innocent of those accusations and I will come peacefully with you but I will say no more until my attorneys are present .”

“Great,” I hear a familiar voice say and watch as Norman Greenwell pulls his dark shades off and looks at me. “Come on, Nicholai. The jig is up .”

It’s hard as hell to keep my mouth shut but I manage as I’m taken by the men to a waiting black Tahoe and placed in the back of it. No handcuffs are used on me and no one has read me my rights so I know I’m not under arrest. That has me breathing a bit easier but not much .

Natasha’s father is in another car. And my mind is on where she is right now. I suppose in Nantucket but I really don’t know that for certain. Neither the driver nor the passenger is looking at me so I take my phone out and look up the Greenwell’s home phone number and find it easily on the internet. “May I make a phone call?” I ask them .

“Sure,” the passenger says .

I press the button to make the call and pray someone is at their home. The phone rings and rings but no one answers. It occurs to me her father may have my number blocked somehow. I need to actually go to the house to see if Natasha was taken there .

It seems my time will be taken up somewhat today by the damn FBI and their questions. But I do have a witness in Nic, back in Greece, to attest to what I was really doing in Greece. I was never without him at my side .

Then I recall that I did go back to the airport alone and that would be enough time to meet someone and deliver information to them. I am in the tightest jam I’ve ever been in and can only pray my attorneys know how to fix this shit storm .

NATASHA

Right in my parents’ living room, I sit on the sofa across from the man who came into the bathroom after me that night after that initiation ceremony in New York. He’s acting as if he’s never seen me before which I find fascinating .

When my mother excuses herself to give us some privacy, I find myself speaking more freely to the man than I was with her in the room. “I know who you are,” I tell him and watch a smile move over his handsome face .

“Good, so I don’t need to pretend about what it is I want,” he says with an even tone. “I despise games, anyway .”

Mom made me wear a blue dress to bring out my eyes and she straightened my hair for me and helped with my makeup so I’d look pretty for the interview. I watch his dark eyes which closely resemble Nic’s as he looks at my exposed legs .

“Nic told me you are a dangerous man and I should stay away from you, Mr. Hawthorn.” I catch his eyes as they dance back up to meet mine .

“Call me James, I insist. And that’s the pot calling the kettle black, isn’t it?” he asks with a grin. “I am no more dangerous than he is. Did you catch the news, Natasha ?”

I shake my head. “I’ve been indisposed until recently. Why do you ask that ?”

“Your Nicholai Grimm is headed to prison it seems. He’s dabbled a bit too deeply into illegal activities and he’s been picked up by the FBI. I’m surprised your father didn’t tell you anything about it,” he says as he looks at my breasts .

I move a bit as I’m uncomfortable with his constant observation of my body. “He told me something about it. I doubt it’s true .”

“He just returned from Greece,” he says then looks into my eyes again. “Were you aware of that ?”

“I’ve been aware of nothing as my father had me tucked away in an abandoned castle to keep me away from Nic. You should know my father, if not aware of your membership in the BBC, will quickly become aware of it when he does a background check on you, which he will do. So, if you’re thinking about you and me being anything more than employer and employee, then you’re in for some major disappointment .”

“Is that what you think I want, Natasha?” he asks with yet another grin on his handsome face .

I nod and cross my legs at the ankles. “Am I wrong? And remember, you don’t like to play games and neither do I .”

“Come to lunch with me,” he says, purposely not answering my question. “I have a proposition for you .”

“It’s a waste of your time, I’m afraid. You see, my heart belongs to Nic. You should understand that. And to be frank, I won’t be taking the internship with your company either.” I watch amusement spread throughout his face .

“Come to lunch with me. I think you might just change your mind when I explain things to you. You see, I get what I want and I want you,” he tells me, sending chills through me .

The man is handsome in the same way Nic is. Dark, brooding good looks, are accentuated by his muscular build. He is built better than Nic and he’s a good two inches taller as well. He’s a magnificent male specimen for sure. But another man holds my heart in his hands and I have no physical want for the hot as hell man who sits across from me, looking at me as if he’d love nothing more than to devour me .

I stare at him as I shake my head. “I don’t care what you want. I am taken .”

“You are not. I’ve checked at the BBC to see if you two have a bond. You don’t. That makes you available. Nicholai is in deep shit and it is you and you alone who can get him out of it. So, come with me and I will explain how you can stop what will surely happen to the man you claim to love if you don’t do as I tell you to .”

My skin is beginning to prickle with nerves as I watch the look on James’ face turn sinister. “Look, James. I know I was in the club and I know you saw me at the museum at that event but I’m not into that lifestyle. Not really. You see, Nic and I were about to make great changes. He was quitting the club. Our plans were normal ones. You’d really hate me. I’m not one to conform, you can ask Nic if you want to about that. I’m not a woman who can be treated the way you want to treat me .”

His eyes go to look over my shoulder and he smiles. “Mrs. Greenwell, I need to get something to eat and your daughter’s company at one of your local cafés. It would be wonderful if you’d allow me to take her with me .”

“Oh! Well, go right ahead. The interview must be going well then,” she says .

I don’t know what the hell to do. Being alone with the man is a definite no-no. “Mom, I’m not sure .”

She stops me as she says, “I meant to tell you, that Nic man has been taken in. He’s in some deep trouble, Tasha. It’s a good thing your father got you away from that man. It looks like he’s about to go down the drain, and in a hurry .”

“Pity,” James says then stands up. “Shall we, Natasha ?”

I have no idea what I’m getting myself into but I have to find out what he can do to get Nic out of the mess he’s in. So, I get up and go with the man I was told to stay away from .

I hope I’m making the right decision !

NICHOLAI

Hours upon hours of interrogations about things I know nothing about have my head pounding. All I can think about is getting to Natasha but I’m stuck here, listening to my lawyers argue with the FBI agents who say some person has told them things about me .

Things that could have my ass locked away for treason !

One of my lawyers leans over and whispers, “This is not going well .”

I nod in agreement and listen as someone walks into the room. A note is given to one of the agents and a frown fills his face. “Bullshit!” He gets up and leaves the room .

The other agents, including Natasha’s father, leave the room, one by one, until only one is left. My lawyers are as confused as I am. “What’s going on?” I finally ask the only agent left .

He shrugs and gets up to go find out. Just as he gets to the door, it opens and it’s Greenwell who walks in and walks right up to me. “I’d love to know what angel is watching over you, Grimm. The man who made the accusations made a phone call to tell us he’d lied. Seems his morals came back around and he saw fit, to tell the truth. He’s not a U.S. citizen so he can’t be punished by our government for his lies. You are free to go .”

“I told you it was a lie,” I say. “I want to see Natasha .”

“That’s up to her,” her father says then walks away .

I find it amazing he said that and hurry out of the room to get to Nantucket as fast as I can. I pass her father in the hallway as my attorneys and I leave. The look he gives me has me wondering what in the hell has him smiling .

“Have you taken her somewhere, else, Greenwell?” I ask him as I stop and stand in front of him .

“Nope,” he says and looks me in the eye. “I have not done a thing with her. But I did get a great phone call a couple of minutes ago. She’s found a new job and has promised me she will not be seeing you anymore. So, I’m happy .”

I’m filled with anger but let it go as I think she has to be misleading him on purpose. With a nod, I turn around. “ I see .”

“You will respect her wishes, won’t you, Grimm?” he asks me as I walk away .

“Of course. But I will hear it from her lips that she no longer wants me before I let her go completely,” I let him know before I go .

“Fine,” he calls out after me. “That’s all a man can ask for .”

I hear him whistling as he goes off in another direction. His lightheartedness agitates me. She can’t really mean she’s not going to see me anymore. She can’t !

One of my lawyers drops me at my home and I go inside and use the house phone to call her parents’ home phone again. “Hello,” I hear a woman answer after only one ring .

“Hello, is Natasha home?” I ask .

“Hmm,” the woman says. “Is this Nic ?”

“Yes, it is,” I say and wait as I tap my foot on the hardwood floor .

“Well, this is Tasha’s mother. You see, she’s gotten a new job and her employer has set up her college courses to be finished with online classes. He’s also set her up in her own apartment in New York,” she says, making my insides turn to jelly .

“Is she there?” I ask and find my voice quivering. “I really need to talk to her .”

“I’m afraid she left with the man who she now works for. You know, since her father has it in for you, you should do yourself a favor and let our daughter go. She will only cause you more trouble, I’m afraid,” she says with a sympathetic tone .

“I love her,” I tell her. “Does she have a cell phone with her? I really have to talk to her .”

“Not that I know of, she doesn’t. You really should move on. I overheard her talking to her father just before she left. She told him she would not be seeing you again. She promised him,” she tells me .

“Who is this man who she left with?” I ask as my hand balls into a fist .

“I can’t tell you. He said not to,” she says. “Tasha told him about you two, I guess. He wants no trouble with you, is what he said. So, I can’t tell you his name or where she’ll be working either. Sorry about that. You have to understand the man .”

“Who would come all the way to Nantucket to offer her a job? That makes no sense,” I say as I look up at the ceiling, battling tears. “Something isn’t right. Can’t you see that ?”

“The man said one of her professors recommended her to him. He’d called a long time ago to set up an interview with her. But she only got back home this morning. I called him last night when I found out she was on the way back from Greece. He was here early to meet with her and he was impressed by her. I’m so happy for her. The place she’s going to be working makes so much more sense for her career than your company ever did. That made no sense at all, really,” she says .

“Please ask her to call me, when you talk to her again,” I say as I try to wrap my head around what is happening to my life .

“I will give her the message, Nicholai . Bye .”

I put my phone in my jacket pocket and fall on the sofa. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do now . None !

My cell rings and I pull it out, praying it’s her but I see it’s my father. “What the hell happened? You should’ve called me !”

“Whoever said those things about me lied,” I tell him. “Do I have my job back or not ?”

“Of course you do,” he says. “What kind of enemies are you making that would do such a thing to you, Nicholai ?”

“I have no fucking idea. All I know is is that it’s over. Thank God whoever it was decided to call the FBI and tell them they were lying .”

“An angel is watching over you, that is for certain,” my father says. “Come to the club, son. Relax for a while. You need to get rid of your stress. Come back to the man you were .”

“Speaking of that. Do you remember a woman named Stacy Holland ?”

He goes silent then whispers, “Why do you ask that ?”

“I met her on the plane on my way back from Greece. She said you two were sweethearts in high school,” I tell him to try to get him off the track of me going to the damn club I have no desire to go to at all .

“Yes, she is telling you the truth. Did she tell you why she never wrote me like she promised me she would?” he asks and I hear a tremble in his voice .

“Actually, she told me she wrote to you only her letters were all returned and you never wrote to her,” I tell him .

“I did write to her and I never got anything in return. I thought she’d lied about loving me .”

“She thought the same thing,” I say. “You don’t suppose your father or mother had anything to do with the letters not being sent and sending hers back, do you ?”

“My father might have. He wanted my head in business, not that girl. She was my one love .”

“So love does exist, huh, Father?” I ask as I get up off the sofa and make my way to my office with an idea .

“I didn’t say that. Tell me, did you happen to get her phone number ?”

“I did,” I say as I stop and pour myself a drink from the bar. I need something to knock the edge off my headache .

“Text it to me, will you?” he asks with a soft voice .

“Okay,” I say. “Talk to you later. I’m calling it a night. I’m beat .”

“ Okay , bye .”

I put the phone back in my pocket and think about what Natasha’s mother said about the place she’d be working being a better place for her career. She was majoring in mechanical engineering with a minor in publications .

Taking my drink and making my way to my laptop in my office, I decide I will look up companies in New York where those degrees would be of importance. That should help me figure out where to start looking for her .

I have to find her !

NATASHA

James keeps his hands to himself as he sits right next to me in the back of the town car his driver is taking us to New York in. My mother was overjoyed when he told her he was very well off and had furnished the apartment he rented for me with everything I’d need. Including clothing. I didn’t need to bring a thing .

It reminded me of what Nic had told me. Bring my body and nothing else .

Only this bond is not a thing I can negotiate. I gave James everything to gain Nic’s freedom. I had to sign the bond in the back of his car then he made one phone call and a short time later I talked to my father on the phone. He told me someone had called in and confessed to telling lies about Nic. He was set free and then James prompted me to tell my father I wouldn’t be seeing Nic anymore .

After that call was made, James put a leather slave collar on me along with a leash he attached to it. “Just in case you think about jumping out of the car, Natasha,” he’d said .

The bond is brutal. He will be my master in all ways. I will have no free will at all. Even now, I cannot ask him a thing. I am to speak only when he tells me I can .

I don’t dare disobey him or he will make sure Nic is charged with something else. I’m racking my brain with what the hell I can do. At the very least I’ll be in New York. Closer to Nic and maybe, just maybe, he’ll find me .

In the bond agreement, I am not to have access to a phone or any other means of communication. James will oversee me when I use the computer to access my classes online. I have to wear an ankle monitor that will let him know if I try to leave the apartment .

I will have no job at his company. I will be a secret he has. If he requires my services, he will come to me. I will be a captive. No pretending. No acting. This is all very real !

He wants it that way. Craves it that way. And I already hate him .

“You and I will have your initiation on Christmas Eve, Natasha. Won’t that be something?” he says as he turns his head to look at me .

I quickly look up and meet his eyes as rule number seventeen states. I nod and he nods back. I avert my eyes again, looking at the floor .

“I have the whole thing planned out already.” I snap my head up to look at him again. His lips part a bit as our faces are close. The back of his hand grazes my cheek. “I will not touch you until we are on that stage, Natasha. For the next three days and nights, you will be completely alone in the apartment. Then, on Christmas Eve I will come for you and take you to where our ceremony will be. Only then will you feel my whips upon your luscious flesh. Only then will you feel my cock buried inside of you .”

“May I tell you something, Master?” I ask him with a reverent tone to my voice as rule number thirty-five states .

“You may,” he allows .

“I am not on any type of birth control. I know that is rule number five,” I tell him, bringing a frown to his face that I once thought of as handsome but now think of as devilish .

“I will give you a female condom to wear for the night of the ceremony. I will send my doctor to the apartment to administer the depo shot to you in the morning. I will not take you again after the ceremony until the doctor assures me you are safe to take .”

I nod and move my eyes to the floor again. The leather collar is tight as hell. It’s already chafing my neck and the weight of it is making my neck hurt. But I dare not speak a word about that to him .

The man sitting next to me is the real fucking deal. Not a man who knows what the lifestyle is really about. This man is evil to his core. I can feel it oozing off him. There’s an energy around him I didn’t notice before I got into the car alone with him .

Alone, he is anything but charming. He is demanding and in complete control. I find it nothing like the way I felt with Nic. Nic had an entirely different demeanor and effect on me. I am terrified of what this man will do to me. And he is well aware of that and seems to thrive on my fear .

He’s tapping away on his phone then stops and sits back, putting his arm along the back of the red leather seat. “I just sent the invitations out to all of the BBC members to attend our ceremony .”

My heart stops as I look at him and my eyes go wide. He laughs at my reaction. “But Nic...” I say then stop as he’s not asked me a thing and I’m not to speak unless he does .

A quick slap to my right cheek has my head turned to one side as tears spring to my eyes. I look down and hold back my cries of pain. “I tolerate no breaking of any rules. Swift punishment will always be given for infractions of any kind .”

I nod as I look at him to show him I am listening. He smiles then runs his hand over the place he slapped. “I like that shade of red on you, Slave.” He pinches the place he slapped, making it hurt even worse. “There, a purple bruise so you can remember this lesson .”

I swallow hard to stop myself from crying. He doesn’t mind of I cry, a thing stated in the notes section of the bond. He actually encourages it. So, I am going to deny him that every fucking chance I get !

As he holds my chin in his hand, inspecting the bruise he’s left on my face, I see a light in his eyes then I notice his pants popping up as he seems to be aroused by what he’s looking at. “Yes,” he hisses then takes my hand as he looks into my eyes and rubs his erection with my hand. “See what that does for me, Slave ?”

“Yes, Master,” I say as I look back into his eyes, scared to death he’s about to change his mind and take me now .

“Were you on birth control or I had any condoms, I’d have you now. But I do believe it will be much sweeter if we wait until the ceremony. You will be fresh to my type of torture. You’re sure to taste sweeter with the tenderizing I will do to your pristine skin. I will eat you out as my fellow members watch us. I am not like the others. I like to hear screams when I damage your flesh and muscle. I want you to scream when I make you mine. I want it to hurt like hell. Tell me you want that too, Slave .”

I can hardly bring myself to say such a thing then I think about Nic and do it, “I want that too, Master .”

“Your blood will drip all over that stage. Only everyone will think it’s only an act. Only you and I will know it’s real. Every time I take you, I will make your blood run. Then I will leave you alone for a week and you will consume great amounts of iron to replenish your blood and let your wounds heal. Then I will come to torture you some more. Tell me that sounds wonderful, Slave .”

I look him dead in the eyes and tell him, “That sounds wonderful, Master .”

“See, you do know how to mind. That idiot, Nicholai, just didn’t know how to be a master. He is soft, that man. Perhaps you should’ve hurried to sign his bond. It would’ve saved you from me. But you dallied with the man. You let your father take you away from him, a thing that will never happen with me. If you allow anyone to attempt to take you away, it will mean even more pain for you. Tell me you understand me, Slave .”

“I understand you, Master.” I hold his dark stare until he puts his hand on top of my head and makes me lower it .

“I see the defiance in your eyes, Slave. It won’t last, though. I will not be taking you to the club to torture you the way I did with one of my slaves. She was taken from me by your sweet Nicholai. He tried to have me thrown out of the club but failed miserably like he does at most things. Once our ceremony is over, I will reveal your face to the members and all will know you are mine. It should devastate your sweet Nicholai. Even if he doesn’t come, which he has been invited to, the others will tell him about it. I cannot wait. Anticipation fills my groin.” He stops rubbing my hand over his pant-covered dick and lets it go .

I try not to gag with his words then raise my hand up so he knows I want to speak. I wait for him to nod at me then say, “The invitation doesn’t have my name on it ?”

“No,” he says as he runs one finger over the bruise on my cheek. “It merely has my club name, Pete. It states that I am making a new slave to add to my harem. Would you like to know how many slaves I have ?”

“Yes, Master,” I say .

“Twelve,” he tells me. “You will be thirteen .”

I nod and look down as he pushes the top of my head again. “I am tired. I must rest. Get on the floor, Slave .”

I do as he says and get on the floor. He puts the leash that’s attached to the collar around my neck, he has a tiny padlock on, around his wrist and holds it as I get on the floor and lie in the fetal position as he closes his eyes and rests his head on the back of the seat .

My head hurts as I try to think how the hell I’m going to get myself out of this. I have no phone. I have no way of communicating with anyone. I know the apartment will be full of security features because this man is a total freak .

Hope is fading fast that Nic or anyone can save me from the man who holds my leash and snores, softly. My father has taught me how to defend myself, but James has way too many muscles for anything I could do to him to work .

The only way I could stop him is a fatal blow. The heel of my hand to the brim of his nose, sending bone straight up into his brain. That would be the only way to stop him .

But can I really kill a person ?

N ICHOLAI

My phone dings with a message from none other than James Hawthorn, inviting me to his ceremony where he’s gaining, yet another, slave. The man is insatiable. How sorry I feel for his latest victim .

It has an RSVP request and I ponder going. It’s on Christmas Eve which is odd. But then again it might be a much-needed attention taker. God knows I need something to help me relieve some of the stress I’m feeling .

I don’t know how in the hell Natasha is free and not calling me. It makes no sense. She knows my cell number. She gave it to Nic, so I know she does. She knows where I live and work .

But perhaps she’s been told not to come to me or contact me, by her father. That may have been a thing he made her promise. Not a thing she did on her own .

She is coming to New York now and should be in the city soon. I wonder if she might be thinking about seeking me out at the BBC. Where we all wear masks and she could hide in plain sight .

The idea has me excited and I leave my office as I have a list of companies she might have been asked to intern at in a file on my desk. As I walk to my bedroom, pulling off my clothes so I can shower and change, it occurs to me that Hawthorn Publications was on that list .

I look at his invitation again and read every single word. No name is mentioned as to who his new slave will be. Shaking off my odd feeling, I head to the room and go to the shower .

I will wait in the club for my Natasha. Surely, she will come to me. Even if it is against her father’s will as well as my father’s, we can leave this place so we can be together in peace. I have more than enough money to last a lifetime even if I never work again .

If her father could spirit her away, so can I !

N ATASHA

Blood drips from my lip where James bit me instead of kissing me right before he left the apartment which will be my new prison. At least for the next three days as I know Nic will end this once James takes me out in the open for our ceremony .

I pray he does, anyway !

The brand James will place on the back of my neck will be real. A real, flesh burning, branding iron will be used to make sure all know I am his. He will do that at the ceremony and to say I’m terrified that will happen before Nic or somebody can save me is an understatement .

James showed me the second bedroom he’s turned into a torture chamber. Whips line the walls. And odd contraptions fill the larger of the two bedrooms .

The apartment is nicely furnished. The kitchen is filled with food and drinks. There are strict guidelines as to what I can consume and when. He assured me he will be checking the inventory, as he called it, to make sure I am following his rules. Punishments will result in anything he finds off in the inventory of the entire household .

As I go to the restroom, I notice small cameras near the ceiling and find myself looking around. I find one in every single room, including the one bathroom in the apartment. Seems he’ll be watching my every move, if he so desires to .

The urge to crumple myself into a ball and cry my eyes out is overridden by the knowledge James Hawthorn would love to see that. I have to remind myself I am doing this for Nic. With any luck at all, I’ll be rescued before any real harm comes to me and people will then know what James Hawthorn is doing to young women .

He has more women he’s doing the same thing to. I doubt any one of them really wanted to go to this extreme of the lifestyle James’ method is loosely based on. James is in another category of BDSM, entirely. One where evil reigns and acting isn’t allowed .

I have no idea at all what the man plans to do to me on some stage somewhere while other members of the BBC look on and think it’s all just a show. He’s told me only a few things. And those things both disgusted and terrified me to my very core .

Closing my eyes and kneeling on the floor next to the large bed in the bedroom, I pray for someone to rescue me sooner rather than later. I need all the help I can get !

NICHOLAI

It’s been over a year since I’ve stepped foot in the warehouse that houses the Billionaire Bad Boy Club. The smell is dank and musty. Cigar smoke and alcohol mix with various brands of cologne and perfume to make a scent that’s not nearly as enticing as I once found it to be .

I recall taking in a big breath when I used to walk into the dark place. Now I’m trying not to breath too deeply at all as I scan the room for her blonde hair .

I have no idea if her father made her dye it or cut it off into some short hairstyle. I have no idea if she’s gained a ton of weight since she was stuck in a castle for over a year. I have no idea of anything. I just know she’d act nervously as this isn’t a scene she feels comfortable in .

But all I see are women hanging onto men and their every word. No one is looking lost or seemly seeking someone out. Then Hawthorn catches my eye as he is looking right at me from behind his simple mask .

One thin length of black leather covers his eyes. He’s easily recognizable which I find odd. He gives me a nod then leans over and nibbles on the redhead’s neck he has his arm around .

Looking away, I wonder if that’s his newest addition to his harem of slaves. Someone should warn the poor girl that he isn’t what he seems to be. From what the woman I rescued from him said, he took the BDSM thing to a level of hell she never knew existed .

I suppose his looks are what reels the unsuspecting females into his lair of evil. He should’ve been kicked out of the club for his actions. The thing that’s really odd about James Hawthorn is that once he makes a woman his slave, since I took that one away from him, he never brings her back into the club again .

I know of three that no one has seen at any function or at the club again. It’s scary once you really think about it. I mean, where are they at ?

Making my way to the poker table, I pick up a drink from a passing waitress and she gives me a look of surprise. “Bill, you’re back !”

“I am. I don’t suppose anyone has been here tonight, asking for me?” I sip my drink as my eyes can’t stop searching for Natasha .

“No,” she says. “I’m glad to have you back. If you need anything at all you will let me know, won’t you ?”

“I will, thank you,” I tell her, then continue towards the poker table .

A hand on my shoulder stops me and when I turn I am looking at James Hawthorn, face to face. “Yes?” I ask him as he moves his hand off my shoulder .

“I sent you an invitation to which you’ve yet to respond,” he says with a certain amount of agitation I didn’t see coming .

“That’s Christmas Eve. Though I doubt my family is doing anything, I must check with them first before I can send the message back to you,” I tell him and see a grin move over his lips .

“I hope you come. I think it’s time you and I buried the hatchet between us. I want to move forward without you as my enemy. Don’t you want that too?” he asks as he offers me his hand .

As I look into his eyes that are dancing with a certain amount of amusement for some reason, I reach out and shake his hand. “The past is the past. We can move on from here, James .”

“Good,” he says then we stop shaking hands and he looks at me with a half-smile as he takes a sip of his clear drink. “It’s been over a year since I’ve seen you here. What’s so special about tonight, might I ask ?”

“I’ve had one hell of a terrible day. I need to let off some steam,” I say then take a sip of my own drink and wonder why the man suddenly wants to be friends .

“I saw the news. But I also saw the jackass who told those lies about you had confessed, getting you off the hook. That should’ve been a huge relief to you.” He looks at me intensely then says, “But you don’t seem to have any relief showing in your tense expression. You should grab a female and beat her until you feel better .”

“I don’t beat women,” I say then take a long drink to help rid me of the irritation the man is making rise inside of me .

“Of course you don’t, Grimm. I meant no harm in the remark. It was a joke,” he says then looks past me. “But I am here to enjoy the women so I will see you later. I do hope you decide to attend my ceremony. It’s going to be at the Central Park Zoo. There should be fresh snow on the ground and her blood will look amazing as it drips all over it .”

My insides quake with his disgusting portrayal of what he has in store for our members to watch. “Did you manage to save a bunch of fake blood from Halloween?” I ask him .

“Fake?” he asks then turns to follow a woman who’s just walked by . “Sure .”

I watch him move in behind the woman like a lion stalking his prey then his hand goes around her throat and he turns her to face him. His mouth is on hers and he’s taking her away to a private room before she knows what’s happened to her .

I shudder as I watch him and wonder why he’s still in this club. He is not a thing we are about. He is evil and he reeks of it. I pity the foolish woman who has agreed to be his slave. She is in for hell .

NATASHA

As I lie in bed and wonder what will happen to me, I have to think my parents will surely come looking for me when I never call them. They will go to James and ask where I am and he will have to tell them something logical. Or even set up a meeting, maybe a lunch or something. If my parents see me harmed in any way, my father will have James’ balls in a vice in no time .

And I have to wonder if Nic knows I’m in New York and if he is wondering why I haven’t tried to contact him or see him. I know he wants to see me. He did go to Greece to try to get me. He must still want me .

But here I lie in a strange apartment, placed here by an even stranger man who I fear like I’ve never feared anyone or thing before. All I can do is hope and pray things will end well for me .

A piercing sound fills the air and then I see a green light come on a small black box beside the bed. “Natasha ?”

It’s James. I guess that thing’s an intercom. “Yes, Master,” I say as I roll my eyes, knowing it’s too dark in the room for him to see that move .”

“I saw that. I have infrared cameras all over the apartment. I’ll make sure to add in a little something for that when I see you on Christmas Eve. I wanted to tell you I saw your beloved, Nicholai tonight at the club .”

I sit up and look at the box. “ You did ?”

“Oh, so much excitement! That will cost you as well. But the answer is yes, I saw him. I thought you’d like to know he took not one but three women to a private room tonight. It seems he’s back in the game and in a more devious way than I’ve ever seen him before. I took the opportunity to peek in on him and his bevy of sluts. It was one fantastic show of manhood in there. He was fucking the life out of them and once I overheard him cursing your name. Just thought you’d like to know that, Slave.” The piercing sound rings out again as he ends his little call and my head hurts .

Lying back on the pillow, I try not to think about what he’s said. He’s most likely lying to hurt me even further. My torture by him is one of completeness, physical and mental .

But as I close my eyes, I see my Nic whipping a woman while taking another from behind and kissing another. Then I see him say he hates me and the tears flow like a river .

Please let James be lying to me. Please !

The Battle Part Seven

N ICHOLAI

The white flakes of falling snow outside my office window have me mesmerized. Or it might be that my mind is numb as I can’t understand why Natasha has yet to contact me .

I shouldn’t even be at the office. It’s Christmas Eve and no one else is even here. But I have this small hope she’ll come here to see me. I know she loves me or she’d never have sent that man to come all the way from Greece to get me .

I just don’t understand !

Turning away from the window, I go to my desk and pick up the phone and call her parents’ home. I’ve been patient and not bothered them again since the day I got back to New York but my patience is running out fast .

“Hello,” her mother answers .

“Merry Christmas, Mrs. Greenwell, this is Nicholai Grimm .”

The way she’s hesitating to say anything has me wondering if Natasha is there. Near her. And maybe near her father as well .

“Have you heard from my daughter, Nicholai?” she finally asks .

“No, that’s the reason I’m calling you. I expected to hear something from her. Even if it was simply to tell me she and I were through. Have you heard from her?” I pick up a pen and chew on the end, nervously .

“I have not and I thought she’d call and tell me all about her new job and apartment. I know she had no cell phone and I suppose the man who hired her didn’t set up a home phone in the apartment he gave her. But I have to say that I’m thinking like you, I thought she’d try to get hold of you to personally let you know she’s over you .”

“Well, she’s not over me. I don’t know if you’re aware of this but she sent a young man from Greece to get me. I missed her by a small amount of time. She wouldn’t have done that if she was done with me. Now would she?” I ask as I throw the pen across the room .

Anger is flowing through me as it seems the woman I love is into something she can’t manage to get out of and I’m growing angrier with each passing moment .

“I was not aware of that. I suppose her father wasn’t either,” she says, then I hear a door close. “He’s home. Can I call you back , Nic ?”

“Please do,” I tell her then she hangs up the phone. I suppose she doesn’t want her husband to know she’s talking to me .

I need to know the name of the man who hired her and took her with him. All of that is unbelievable and I don’t see how her father approved of that at all .

My cell rings and I see it’s my father. “Hello, Father .”

“Hello. I wanted you to be the first to know. Your mother and I talked and we are separating. We came to an agreement that she’s very happy with. She’s keeping the house and the cars she likes. I’m going to pay her a tidy sum in alimony each month too. She seems happy. For the first time in a long time, she had a smile on her face .”

I stand perfectly still, more than a bit stunned. “She’s happy ?”

“She is. She told me to tell you she’s going to take a trip to start her new life. She wants you to call her so you two can talk a bit about her plans,” he says then clears his throat. “I talked to Stacy .”

“I can see that. Are you two going to be a thing now?” I ask as I take a seat in my chair .

“No,” he says, surprising me. “We’re going to talk now and then, she said. I just wanted to let your mother out of this loveless marriage we’re in. I wanted to let us both out of it. I recalled feeling love, once upon a time, and it gave me the idea that if it happened once, it could happen again. Maybe not with Stacy. But it could happen again .”

“Wow!” I say. I am rendered speechless .

“Yes, wow,” he says then clears his throat again. “About your woman, Nicholai. What have you heard on her ?”

“It’s still the same as what I told you three days ago. She’s here, in New York. She has some internship and an apartment. But she has no cell phone that her mother is aware of. I still can’t believe she wouldn’t take a cab to my home or office, though.” I turn my chair to look out the window again and find the city looking gorgeous with the fresh dusting of snow .

“I know I’ve been against you and that woman. But I am beginning to realize I’ve shut myself off for far too long. I’m butting out, son. And there’s something else I want to tell you. Stacy brought to my attention that I have never told you that I love you. I do. I do love all of my sons. And I’m going to make some changes. Get ready for a new father, Nicholai .”

Tears sting my eyes as he finally says the words to me I had come to think I’d never hear come out of his mouth. “I love you too, Father .”

“Good! We can start moving forward. Change is in the air, Nicholai. And I feel it’s all for the good. I will not be attending the ceremony for Hawthorne tonight. It’s at midnight and I plan on being in bed by that time. You understand, don’t you?” he asks .

He’s never cared if I understood a thing before. I guess things are going to change. “I do. I’m not sure if I’ll be attending or not, myself. If by some miracle, Natasha comes to me, then I certainly won’t .”

“You know, Nicholai, I think it’s time I left that life behind me. I will never find a nice woman to love and who can love me if I am into that life. I won’t judge you if you stay with the club, though .”

“Good to know. I really have no idea what I’ll do. It all depends on Natasha. If she comes back to me, I think I’m going to scoop her ass up and marry the woman. If she leaves me high and dry without so much as a single word from her, it will cut me to the quick. And I have no idea how I will handle myself if that happens. I suppose I’ll go back to not believing love exists. For myself, anyway .”

“I understand. And I hope she shows up. You know, maybe she was waiting until tonight or even tomorrow to come to you. As a Christmas surprise, you know ?”

Closing my eyes, I picture her showing up on my doorstep. A red corset on and a Santa hat. A bottle of wine in one hand and her lips pursed for a kiss .

“I hope like hell, you’re right, Father. You have a Merry Christmas. I will talk to you tomorrow .”

“You too, Nicholai .”

Our call is ended and I am left wondering what in the hell I can do to make sure I get to spend Christmas with the woman I love .

Where in the hell could she be ?

NATASHA

James came sometime during the night and left the things I am to wear to the ceremony tonight. I found the box on the coffee table in the living room. A note was on top of the red box .

I am to fast today. Eat and drink nothing until he comes for me. I know that’s because he wants to make sure I am too weak to put up a fight. He’s a smart man, never underestimating my power at all times .

It’s almost as if he can read my mind. I had planned to go through with actually trying to kill the man. With a solid hit to his nose, the way my father taught me to. But he’s placed a set of handcuffs in the box and I am to cuff my hands before his arrival .

The attire he’s making me wear is more than I am comfortable with. Or perhaps I should say less. It’s merely straps of black leather that run under my breasts and around my upper thighs. I will be completely exposed .

A red cloak will cover me as he transports me to wherever this ceremony will occur. I will wear no shoes, it seems, as none were in the box .

I am to wash my hair and put it into a slicked back ponytail. The mask I have to wear is huge, covering my entire face. I will not be recognizable at all .

Looking at my reflection in the full-length mirror in the bedroom, I’m shaking my head as I look at my body in this so-called outfit. The scar from where I fell out of a tree when I was twelve shows. It’s under my left breast and is quite large as I was impaled by a limb and had to go to the hospital with the injury .

The limb barely missed piercing my heart. It was a miracle, the doctors all said. Running my hand over the large scar, I recall it was also on Christmas Eve when it happened all those years back .

I was climbing the tree with my cousins in our grandmother’s backyard. When I fell, it pretty much ruined that Christmas. But all of my family came to see me at the hospital and I got way more presents than anyone else did .

I’ve always worn bathing suits that hid the scar. I hate it. And now I have to go out in front of a bunch of people, completely bared to them, including my ugly scar .

Unable to fight it back any longer, the desperateness of the situation overwhelms me. I fall to the floor and hide my face on the carpet. I can’t stop the sobs from coming out of me .

Loudly, I wail. I’ve never felt more hopeless. No one can save me !

No matter how loud I cry, all will think it’s an act. No matter how much I beg for help, they will think I am adding to the drama of the act .

The squeal of the intercom draws my attention and I raise my head to look up at the camera in my room as James’ voice fills it. “Finally, I thought you’d never crack .”

“Please, James. Please, let me go,” I beg as I look into the camera. “I can’t go through with this. I can’t !”

“You can go free. It will mean Nicholai will be ruined. Get dressed and I will let you out,” he says .

“What will you do to ruin Nic?” I ask, as maybe I can get away from him and go to my father and let him know what he’s doing to Nic .

“I have seven different ways to send the man to prison. Hell, I’ll let you choose the method of his demise if you’d like. All can be immediately deployed. He will be picked up by the authorities before I let you go free .”

My heart falls and I know I can’t let that happen to Nic. “I will stay. Leave him alone. I will honor the bond we signed .”

“Good to hear. Now, please, feel free to cry some more. It gets me off and I’m bored at the moment. If it makes you feel any better, Nicholai has been at the club every night and I think during the days too. He’s kept a redhead with him everywhere he goes. I do believe you’ve been replaced .”

Not able to take it any longer, I pull my body up off the floor and throw myself onto the bed. He may be lying to me or he may be telling me the truth. I have no idea. I just know I will be at the mercy of the man on the damn intercom sometime tonight and I can already feel the burning flesh on the back of my neck from the brand he’ll be putting on me .

As I cry into the pillow, I have to wonder why my father doesn’t have people looking for me. Surely, my parents know I’m the kind of woman who calls when I get to places I’m going. I’m the kind of person who checks in on a daily basis .

With no money, phone, or even decent clothes to go outside in, even if I could get out of the apartment, I am stuck. I suppose I could get out but it would set off alarms, and most likely send one of James’ plans against Nic into action. So, I sit here, waiting for the inevitable. Waiting to become James Hawthorne’s very real sex slave .

All hope is gone of being saved. No one will ever recognize me. My fate has been set. One I never saw coming .

I should’ve never stepped foot in the fucking Billionaire Bad Boy Club !

N ICHOLAI

After making repeated phone calls to Natasha’s parents without getting any answer, I’ve decided they must be on their way to New York to see if they can find her. Leaving me out of everything .

But that was to be expected. The day has come and gone and the eleven o’clock hour has just rolled in. My cell lights up with a text and I see it’s from Hawthorne. ‘Will you be at the ceremony ?’

His insistence on me being at his damn ceremony to welcome his new slave to our society is annoying, to say the least. After spending a few hours at the club that night after the FBI interrogation, attempting to occupy my mind with poker and failing miserably, I’ve stayed home only to have repeated texts from him to join him at the club .

Why he wants to suddenly be best buddies is a thing I not only do not understand but am growing tired of, quite rapidly. I place the phone on the table beside my bed where I have already retreated to. There is the slightest hope Natasha will surprise me at midnight, so I want to be all ready for her arrival. If that happens .

My screen lights up again and I grab it up, ready to pound out a text for him to leave me the fuck alone. Only it’s a number I don’t recognize and it says, ‘Something’s not right about Natasha .’

‘Who is this?’ I text back .

‘Her mother. Her father and I came to look for her but she’s not in the apartment the man gave us as her address. The doorman has never seen her, as we showed him a picture. I’ve asked Norman if we could call you but he’s told me to leave you out of it. I’m worried, though .’

After a long moment, I text back, ‘I need to know the name of the man who gave her the job and apartment .’

‘He said not to tell you that. He also told me not to tell her father. I’m acting like I don’t know his name. Ask me anything else,’ she texts back .

‘What company is she interning for?’ I ask in hopes of that helping me in some way to find her .

‘They’re closed for the holidays. So how will that help? I’m worried that we might mess this job up for her. I don’t want to jump the gun .’

The woman is trying my patience. ‘Tell me the name of the company !’

‘Hawthorne Publications .’

As my eyes focus on the name of the company, my heart pounds like a sledgehammer in my chest. Tossing the blankets off me, I haul ass to the bathroom to get ready .

Before I dress, I tap out a text to James Hawthorne to throw his ass off. ‘I’m not coming. Thanks for the invitation, though .’

Then I send one to Natasha’s mother. ‘Go to the Central Park Zoo. Wear masquerade masks and speak to no one. Make sure your husband has his gun with him. And be prepared to see things you’ve never seen before. I will be there in a black tux with a Phantom of the Opera mask on .’

Praying I am way off, I hurry to get ready and head down to take off for the zoo. It’s beyond my imagination that Natasha would purposely make a bond with that man to be his slave. Not that woman !

But he may be holding something over her head. Maybe telling her father about her involvement with the club. Or maybe something even worse. The fact the doorman of the apartment building said he didn’t recognize her is giving me an eerie feeling .

The woman I saved from him said James would leave her alone in the apartment he set her up in and made her wear an ankle bracelet that would go off if she left it. He has the means and the ingenuity to take Natasha somewhere and stash her until he is ready for her .

If that man thinks he can take that woman, he is sadly mistaken !

NATASHA

With the mask and cloak on, James whisks me out of the apartment building after sending the doorman on an errand for him. He’s been extremely careful about not having me seen at all .

His driver opens the door of the town car and I slip into the back, then James comes in after me. “On the floor, Slave .”

I quickly comply, trying to reserve my energy for a fight later, when I’ll need every ounce of energy I can muster. “Yes, Master.” I move to the floor and take a position of submission .

Although my body has been ravaged by the drugs my father had me on for over a year and then the fasting James has made me do, my mind is sharper than ever. There has to be at least one man in the audience tonight who will listen to me when I shout to call Nic .

I’m prepared to take all I can before the actual branding occurs. I will fight to my death to stop that from happening. James Hawthorne is in for a rude awakening. I did warn him about myself .

After I fell apart and cried for over an hour, I found a reserve of strength and faith hidden deep inside of myself. I also recalled some things about the people I’ve met at the club. Though not many, I did manage to meet a few and I have faith those people will step up and help me when I ask for it .

With James’ confession of having quite a few irons in the fire, ready to be aimed at Nic, I have all I need to have the man arrested for blackmail. When you add in the fact he has to have the bonds he has with his other slaves on file with the BBC, that should be all anyone needs to put the man away for a very long time .

There’s no way more than a few of his other slaves hasn't found the way they’re being treated unfair and inhumane. Perhaps my fate was to walk into the club that night for the other women and future women James Hawthorn would torture and terrorize .

I’d like to think it was merely to meet Nic, the man I love, even though I never saw that coming. It seems my reason may have been two-fold for following Dani’s advice and joining her that night. The night that changed my life .

The car stops and James pulls my leash that’s attached to the collar he has tightly wrapped around my neck. He’s never gentle about anything he does. When he gets out of the car, he jerks the leash, making me run forward and nearly fall .

My bare feet are what helps me not to get tripped up and I walk quickly behind him with my head down. The smells of hay, animal shit, and cotton candy hit my nose as he hurries along with me into a large wooden gate .

As we walk inside, I can tell we’re at a zoo. It’s dark but the half-moon’s light glows off the white snow-covered walkway. My feet are freezing but that’s okay. It’s making my mind sharp as the snow bites at the soles of my feet .

We meet a man who unlocks a cage and I am placed inside of it. “You will wait here until the show begins,” James tells me as he takes my cuffed hands and pulls them up, looping them over a screw that’s jutting out of the enclosure .

My toes barely touch the snow-covered ground as my body is stretched to its limits. Then he does something I did not see coming. My mask is pulled off and he puts a gag-ball in my mouth and ties the straps so tightly, I can’t make more than a slight sound. My mask is put back on with no one the wiser that I am unable to scream or make loud noises .

I had relied on his desire to hear my screams and cries so I could shout for someone to get Nic. Now that’s gone. He must’ve thought about it and decided it was too risky to expect me to comply with the bond .

Growls fill the air behind me. Large cats, lions perhaps. Bears, for certain. And wolves howl in the darkness behind me. My body heats with the terror I’m feeling. I am at the mercy of the animals in the position I’m in .

Would he really allow the animals to rip me apart? Would any of the members who will soon be here allow that kind of show to be put on ?

I have no idea to what extremes any of the people, who make the BBC their hobby, will go to in order to push the envelope. James seems to want to scare the shit out of them all. Especially me .

I watch as other women are brought into the cage. They all give me sorrowful gazes as they enter the cage, all wearing the same thing I am. Some of their red cloaks blow apart as they walk in, showing me the same little leather straps I have on, that merely accent their private areas, covering none .

All the other women, who are around my size, have their hair pulled back into a high ponytail and we all wear the same full facial mask to hide our identity to the maximum effect .

I, alone, am cuffed and hanging up. Dropping my head lower, I can see out of the corners of my eyes they are being placed on either side of me. Six on one side and six on the other .

The animals who I hear have to be in other cages behind this one or we’d have been attacked by now. Two gurneys are brought in and I have to wonder why that is. Does he plan to kill a couple of the women tonight ?

The gurneys are put at the end of each line of the other slaves and then two chairs are brought in and placed at the front of each line. My heart starts to beat harder as music begins to well up and I hear claps and cheers .

Looking up for a moment, I realize a heavy black curtain is shielding us from the audience’s view. The members of the BBC and their slaves are waiting on the other side of the curtain for the show to begin .

A man, wearing tight spandex pants that reveal a huge bulge between his muscular legs, walks up next to me. He has on a black mask and horns protrude through the top, making him appear demon-like. His mask is slit at the mouth and he leans up, licking the length of my neck. “Prepare to find out what hell is really like, Slave .”

I had an idea it was James and nod as I can’t speak at all with the thing in my mouth. My body already hurts and the real torture hasn’t even begun .

The music comes to a crescendo then falls to complete silence. And I am doomed !

NICHOLAI

Taking a place at the front of the seating that’s been set up for the show, I don’t see Natasha’s parents anywhere. Her mother may not have been able to get her father to come to this place .

If I am right about who Hawthorne is trying to make his newest slave, then her father needs to be here. I may need his help as I have no idea who will help me to save her and who will help Hawthorne to keep her .

I called my father and he’s supposed to be here too. But I don't see him either. It’s extremely hard to tell who is who in the dim lighting and with all the black tuxedos and masks all the men are wearing .

They will be here if needed, I hope .

The music swells and then stops and I find myself sitting on the edge of my seat. Slowly, the black curtain rises and everything behind it is pitch black .

A sudden burst of sound and light open a spotlight on a young woman who is handcuffed and strung up at the front middle of a large cage. An animal enclosure. A man, James Hawthorne, most certainly, is standing next to her. His hand is on her long ponytail .

She is wearing a mask that hides her entire face and a red cloak is covering her body, though I can see small glimpses of naked flesh underneath it. It’s freezing out here and she has on no shoes which pisses me off no matter who that is .

The light spreads out, showing two lines of six women each on either side of the one James is next to. They all are dressed exactly alike. It’s impossible to tell one from the other .

The music goes into jungle-like sounds and more lights fill the cages behind the enclosure. The animals in the other cages roar, growl, and howl. It’s nearly deafening all the noise they make as they all seem highly agitated .

I look the animals over and find one cage houses two male lions, A huge bear is in another, and three wolves are in the last cage. All seem to be males and that has me worried about what he’s going to have the women do .

James is wearing some type of demon mask and looks every bit the part. He turns the woman who is strung up, the one I assume is to be his new slave, to one side. Taking her head, he lifts it up and makes her look to the left. “You will watch as I please your sister slaves .”

I see the woman nod then James walks away, going to the last woman in the line and picking her up, placing her on a gurney, he pushes her to lie back on it and tosses her red cape back to reveal her body, naked except for some leather straps that cover nothing .

Lifting her knees up as he spreads her legs open, he wheels the gurney to the side so the audience can see what he’s about to do better. His tongue flicks out of the slit in his full facial mask and the women in the audience moan and pant .

Forcing the women’s legs as far apart as they will possibly go, he leans over and licks her with one long slow lick. I shudder as the women in the audience shriek and shout out their praises to him .

The animals stop what they were doing and watch James as he performs cunnilingus on his slave and she moans and writhes as he does. Her hands grip the sides of the gurney but she never arches up to him while he administers to her. Only the top part of her body is moving .

I look back at the new slave and see her head is lowered. She is not looking as James instructed her to and that has me thinking my hunch is absolutely correct .

Turning back, I scan the audience and still cannot find her parents or my father. I look back as the woman screams in ecstasy. When James pulls his face away from her, his mask is shiny with her juices around the slit where his mouth is .

Quickly I look and find the new slave’s head is still looking down and I look back and see James has seen that too. He makes quick, long strides to her and takes a whip from behind a chair that is near her. “Open your eyes, Slave !”

Her head snaps up and she looks at him. His whip flies through the air, catching her on her back and making her body arch to get away from the strike. “Watch me as I pleasure your sister slaves. Your turn is coming .”

She nods and looks at him as he goes to the next woman. He merely points to the ground as he approaches the next to the last woman and she falls quickly to her hands and knees. He twirls his finger and she moves so we see her from the side .

He pulls his swollen cock out and she takes it into her mouth. My eyes leave them as one of the lion’s roars, taking my attention momentarily then they dart back to James. The way he’s facing toward the new slave and the other four women who are standing in line, looking down, has him whistling to make them look at them .

All four heads turn in unison as he says, “Give me something to look at, Slaves .”

The women know what he wants without being told and two of them automatically take positions, lying on the ground while the other two take positions at their centers and start kissing their sister slaves in their intimate areas. All of them make tons of sounds as he seems to like all that noise .

When I hear a gag coming from just behind me, I look over my shoulder and spot what has to be Natasha’s parents as the woman’s face is buried in the man’s chest and he too cannot watch what’s happening .

I look back at the stage to find James beginning to quiver as his juices shoot down the woman’s throat and he moans loudly. The sound of all the people moaning has the animals going completely insane. Growling and pawing at the cages to get free. I would guess the smell of sex is abundant in their sensitive nostrils and making them crazy horny .

The two women who were performing on their sister slaves are drawn up by him and he kisses them back and forth, sampling all the tastes. He then gestures for them to go to the slave who just sucked him off and they all three trade kisses then and the first slave he pleased joins them. Then he pulls the other slaves who are still lying on the ground up and ushers them to trade kisses with the others .

He leaves them all kissing and fondling one another as he makes his way to the hanging slave. Walking straight up to her, he takes her by the waist and holds her tightly. “You, I will make mine. My cock is only for you on this night.” He gestures to the women, who have yet to do a thing, the other six slaves who stand with their heads down. “Your sister slaves will prepare you for me. I prefer your flesh be tender before I devour it .”

Lifting her up, he takes her cuffed hands off a hook and places her feet on the ground. With a few steps back, he looks at the other women and claps his hands twice .

They fall into action, making their way to the new slave. She is standing and waiting for them. Two take her arms and lead her to a chair that is near her and place her cuffed hands on the back of it .

The other four women are placing the fourth slave’s hands on the back of the opposite chair, just like the new slave’s are. Two of the women get whips that are behind the chairs .

James watches as he rubs his cock which has been placed back inside his tight black spandex pants. The older slave is struck first and she screams a blood curdling scream .

It makes my insides shake. I’ve never had this reaction to that before. Their cloaks are still on so the whip did not hit the flesh but that woman sounded as if it hurt like hell .

When the other woman hits the new slave, not a sound is made and James claps his hands. “She may seem tough but she is hiding something .”

The audience says, “Oh!” all at once .

I watch closely to see any sign the new slave is Natasha. My eyes scan everything as James and all of his slaves are in the enclosure. There is a large padlock that is holding the one large gate closed .

I have to look very hard into the darkness at the outside far end of the cage and there I see a person completely clad in black and I bet anything he has the key to that gate .

The fact James has him and his women locked in that cage together and away from all of us is a red flag to me. I look back and see the man who has the woman’s face hidden in his chest and lift my mask up enough to reveal my eyes to him. When he nods at me and winks, I know it’s Natasha’s father .

I point to the man in black who I think might have the key and he looks that way then nods at me. I feel a bit of relief as he then points at a man standing to the far left then one to the far right and he winks again. I take that to mean he’s brought back-up and that is a gift in itself .

Though I am still not sure that’s Natasha as I think she’d have screamed her ass off by now. I wait and watch the show to see if something will be revealed to me .

But I pray it’s not her up there !

NATASHA

All the sounds are working against me, drawing my mind into the sex. The animals are even excited. And that has me very worried about what else James has in store for us, his slaves .

I’ve tried my best to scan the audience but when I do get a chance to look out, I can’t see a thing as the damn spotlights hit my eyes and blind me. It almost seems as if we’re alone here in this cage. Only the sounds of people shouting and clapping let me know people must be out there, watching us all .

The whip, falling across my cloak-covered back didn’t really hurt. I suppose the other woman knows what James wants to hear and gives it to him. All of the other women are loud, a thing Nic didn’t like at all. Their sounds are fake, I can tell .

They all sound like the few pornos I did catch bits and pieces of in the boys’ dorms in my early years of college. Nic hates that fake shit and so do I. But I know all too soon the pain will be real and if that man actually sticks his fucking cock in me, I will cry like a baby. I know I will .

No one may hear me as he’s stuck this damn ball in my mouth, but tears will flow and my heart will break into millions of tiny shards. My only love is Nicholai Grimm and my heart will always beat only for him. No matter what !

I look to the right and find the other woman, who is being punished like I am, is being stripped of her cloak. The next lash will strike her pearly white skin and I flinch as my cloak is untied and taken off too .

I am bent over, holding the back of the chair. It’s shielding me from anyone seeing anything much as far as boobs or the other essential areas are concerned. But I can feel the cold on my body and my nipples are as erect as they can get .

When the whip comes down on the other slave’s back, she grips the chair so tight, her knuckles are white and she screams like crazy. I watch a trail of blood rise to the surface of her back and begin to drip off her side .

I brace myself for some excruciating pain and when the whip hits me, it burns like fire. I scream but the gag holds it in. I find two of the other slaves holding me still as another strike is made on my sister slave and then I get another .

I see my blood drip off both sides of my back. My stomach hurts as the pain is bad enough to make me nauseous. Before I can even get a hold of myself, James takes me by the throat and his fat cock presses against my ass as he pulls me up in front of him .

The places on my back, where my skin has been split, burn as he holds me so tight, my back touches his chest. He moves behind me, his torso rubbing my pulsing back, making it hurt worse .

Stepping to one side, the chair is no longer hiding anything. My body is bare to the audience. He steps beside me and I see my blood all over his chest. My body is shaking with the pain and embarrassment .

He steps behind me again, towering over me. His hands run down my arms and he lifts my arms up over my head. Elongating my body and further exposing me to the people who are watching this act of cruelty .

They may think it’s just an act. A dramatic, erotic act. But it’s real and the man who is holding me up as his prize is a real demon, not a fake one .

If I could talk, if I didn’t have this thing in my mouth, now would be the time I’d scream for help. But I am utterly helpless and James Hawthorne is acutely aware of that fact .

Suddenly the sound of someone hitting the cage has me looking up and I see a man in a tuxedo and a Phantom of the Opera mask, standing just outside the cage. His fingers are curled around the fencing as he leans on it and looks at me. “Natasha ?”

It’s Nic and I nod, only to find James pulling my ponytail to stop me from nodding anymore. I’m tossed quickly back to my sister slaves who form a circle around me, hiding me from Nic .

My hands are cuffed and the women who are in the same boat as me are holding me back from getting to the man who can help me. I look at each of them with begging eyes. It’s to no avail I see as they all look away .

One of them whispers, “It’s no use, sister. Accept your fate as we all have .”

I shake my head and look at them frantically as I hear Nic shouting, “Pete has my slave in his quarters. I have the bond here to prove that !”

“You have no bond with any of my slaves, Bill. Take a seat and enjoy the show,” I hear James say .

The animals go crazy as a commotion at the far end of the enclosure is loud and shouts are heard. Then I hear my father’s voice shout, “You are under arrest, James Hawthorne !”

The pack of women who have surrounded me, break open on one side as James comes into the circle. They close the circle around us as he tosses me to the ground and yanks my ass back up. I feel his erection on the naked flesh of my ass but the spandex is still covering him. He’s trying to take me before Nic can get through the locked gate. I start to kick and move to evade him. “Hold her,” he tells the other women through clenched teeth .

He pulls me back and I feel something hot on the back of my neck and scream but no one hears a thing as the gag keeps me quiet. I struggle to get away from him as I feel the smooth skin at the tip of his dick touch my ass cheek and I buck like I’ve never bucked in my life .

“Move!” I hear Nic’s deep voice command as the women who were surrounding me are sent out of his way. I am sprawled out on the hard, cold ground, my ass pulled into the air. As I feel the weight of James lifted off me, I roll out of the way .

Instantly, the other women have me and pull me with them to one side of the enclosure. The animals are so loud I can barely hear a thing. Boos and hisses echo in the background as the audience make their sentiments known .

A red cloak is thrown into the ball of women who hold tightly to me. “You bitches better let my baby go !”

It’s my mother and she sounds like a she -wolf !

Then I begin to hear whispers from the women who are holding me, “Help us too, please. We want out. Help us .”

They move away from me like petals on a blooming flower and I hear my mother say, “You ladies stay with me. All who want out will get out .”

I’ve never seen my mother be so protective in my life. I’m wrapped in the cloak by her and she pulls my mask off. When she sees the gag in my mouth, tears well up in her light blue eyes. One of the other girls unties it, giving me some much-needed relief. I open and close my mouth a few times then smile . “Mom !”

I hug her for all I’m worth then I hear a gunshot and we all stop and turn to look as my father, Nic, and James lay still on the ground in a pile. Just inside the enclosure .

An odd sound comes from behind us and the sound of steel squeaking has us all looking that way. The door to the lions’ cage slowly opens. The bullet must’ve hit the lock and the lions are free !

My father’s head pops up on the pile of men he is on top of. “Everyone out of the enclosure, now!” he shouts .

No one needs to tell us we need to get the hell out of here. We run in a panicked herd to the rather small opening. I barely see my father grab up Nic and Nic has James in a choke-hold, so he comes with him and they go to the gate too .

Somehow we manage to all get out and Dad shuts the gate. Everyone is panting as we stop on the safe side of the cage to find the lions have not even left their cage. They seem as surprised by the open door as we are .

One of the zoo workers zips past us and runs into the cage, throwing his hands around and yelling at the lions who move to the back of their enclosure. He closes the gate and slaps a new lock on it as the audience cheers like crazy .

I suppose they think it’s all part of the show, the fools !

NICHOLAI

When I strip the mask off Hawthorne’s head, the audience begins to murmur. I assume they’re finally seeing this is not part of the act. My father makes his way through the crowd to us, pulling his mask away too .

The FBI agents pull their masks off as well and come to take Hawthorne from me as Natasha’s father finishes reading him his rights. He then turns to the women and says, “I’ll need you all to come with us to our headquarters. We’re going to need full statements and we’ll help you all get back to your families .”

Natasha’s mother has her wrapped tightly in her arms. With James in the hands of the authorities, I make my way to her and find tears falling down her cheeks. Her mother lets her go and she comes to me with haste .

“Nic!” Her arms go around my neck as I lift her up in my arms .

She pushes my mask up and we look at each other for a long time. It’s as if we’re silently getting reacquainted after such a long time apart. “Hey,” I whisper as a lump has risen in my throat .

“Hey,” she says then her hand cups the back of my head and she pulls me to kiss her .

The sounds I hear seem far away as people clap and cheer. But all I can think about is how good this woman feels in my arms and I want nothing more than to take her home .

The sound of a man clearing his throat has me ending our sweet kiss. We turn our heads to see her father standing there, looking at us. “Can you bring her to the FBI headquarters? We need her statement too .”

“I’m taking her home to shower and change first,” I tell him .

He nods and moves on to get the other women rounded up to take them to give their statements. Natasha leans her head on my chest as I carry her away. “My God, I’ve never been so glad to see a person in my entire life , Nic .”

“Me neither,” I say as I carry her out the back way to avoid the other people .

“How did you know it was me?” she asks as she looks at me with confusion .

“The scar under your left breast. Now, aren’t you glad I took the time to get to know your body?” I ask her as I recall her trying to stop me from looking at that scar .

“Nicholai!” I hear my father call out .

I stop and wait as he approaches us. “Yes, Father ?”

“I want to know if Natasha is okay. Should she be taken to the hospital?” he asks as he gets to us .

She shakes her head. “No, sir. Thank you for asking. I think some ointment on the lashes will suffice. And all I really need is Nic and I have him now. I’ll be okay .”

He gives her a nod then looks at me. “Make sure she gets a check-up, Nicholai. Take good care of her .”

“I will, Father,” I tell him then start heading to my car again .

She looks up at me with furrowed brows. “When did he start liking me ?”

“Recently,” I tell her then kiss her forehead. “Things are changing, my princess .”

“I can see that.” She leans her head against my chest again. “I am so tired. You have no idea. I’m probably going to sleep for a week .”

Her voice is hoarse and weak and her body feels twenty pounds lighter than it did before she was taken from me. I could hate her father and hold a grudge for what he did to her, forever. But I won’t be doing that. I will forgive the man .

When I have a daughter, I might do insane things to try to protect her myself. All that really matters is I have the woman I love back in my arms and I will hold tight to her forever. I stop as I see a star falling from the sky and watch it as the light trails behind it. “Make a wish, Natasha .”

She looks at the star too and closes her eyes, making a silent wish. When she opens them, she smiles. “It came true,” she says .

“And how do you know that?” I ask as I continue to the car .

“I wished for this not to be a dream. I’ve had so many dreams of you rescuing me. In my dreams, when I opened my eyes, you’d be gone and I’d be alone in one of my prisons. This time, you’re really here. I’m really in your arms and you are really taking me to your home, right ?”

“Our home,” I say as I get to the car and open the door, sliding her into the front seat. “I am taking you to our home, my princess .”

“That sounds fantastic to me, my prince. Our home. Our life. Our love. Take me home, Nic. It’s been too long.” She runs her hand over the back of her neck. “Nic, did he brand me here ?”

I look at the back of her neck to find a bite mark but no brand. “No, he bit you pretty good but I’ll put ointment on it so often it won’t leave a scar .”

Her sigh of relief tells me she was worried about him leaving a permanent mark on her. It wouldn’t matter to me if he did. I’d still love her just the same .

Closing her door, I feel my heart beating differently. It’s hard to believe this is finally over. We’ve waited for over a year and been through hell but it’s finally over and we can start our lives together .

Slipping behind the steering wheel, I look at her to find her resting her head on the leather headrest. “You look beautiful .”

She reaches out to touch my cheek. “You do too .”

I smile and pull her hand to kiss her palm. “Let’s get you home .”

As I pull out of the parking lot, amidst a sea of other people leaving the zoo, all I can think about is how blessed I feel at this moment. When I feel her hand taking mine off the steering wheel to hold it, I sigh with how natural it feels to hold her hand on top of the middle console that separates us .

“You’re the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten,” she says as she gazes at me .

I look at her, returning her smile. “I think that about you too. You can bet I will lavish you with gifts once the sun comes up .”

“I only want one thing from you, Nic.” She moves her hand up my arm with a gentle stroke .

“And what is that?” I ask her as my skin heats from her soft touch .

“I want you to stay in bed with me all day and night and make sweet love to me as many times as possible.” She bites her lower lip and makes a tiny moan .

“Now, that does sound like a nice way to spend our first Christmas together, doesn’t it? I think I can manage that for you .”

“Merry Christmas, my prince .”

I take her hand and press my lips to it. “Merry Christmas, my princess .”

This may be the best Christmas of our lives !

NATASHA

The snow is still falling as we go to the FBI building so I can tell them everything James Hawthorne has done to me and Nic. A hot shower and some food have me feeling a lot better .

I wish I didn’t have to leave the house to do this but it needs to be done and the sooner I can see that man behind bars the better I’ll feel. The driver drops us off in front of the large building and Nic takes my hand, leading me inside .

Two women with high ponytails and trench coats walk out the door just before we walk in. “Hello,” I say as I recognize them as a couple of James’ former slaves .

“Thank you,” one of them says. “We’ve needed someone like you to come into our lives and help us for some time now .”

Nic looks ashamed as he says, “I feel partially responsible for how you all have been treated. The rules our club has did not protect you at all. I will stay on at the club, merely to rectify the rules to protect women from now on .”

The women look at each other, then at us. One of them says, “That will be nice of you. Neither of us will ever be returning to that club or any like it, ever again. I’m heading back to Minnesota to live with my grandparents until I feel stronger, mentally and physically .”

“I’m going back to Nebraska to live with my parents while I get the help I need to get over this,” the other one tells us .

“I’m glad you two have found ways to help you overcome this tragedy. I was a shell of a person when he first took me to the apartment. I cried and nearly gave up. But then I felt as if I’d been sent to help you women. And any women in the future he’d bring into his torture chambers. May God bless and keep you two,” The hug we three share has me finding tears stinging the back of my eyes as I try desperately to hold them back .

I’m a bit surprised as Nic joins our hug, enveloping us all in his strong arms. “I’m so sorry this happened to you all. I will do all I can to make sure this never happens again. I will personally, take care of finding a lawyer to make sure you ladies are handsomely compensated for your mental and physical anguish. I want none of you to ever have any financial problems for the rest of your lives .”

“Thank you,” one of them says as we all pull away from one another, ending the hug and wiping our eyes .

With a wave, we watch them go down the sidewalk to hail a cab. Nic calls out, “Go to that black car parked over there. My driver will take you wherever it is you need to go .”

They nod and walk towards the car. He pulls his phone out and gives the driver his directions to aid the women in whatever they need. As we walk inside the building that’s sparsely populated with it being Christmas Day, I say, “That was sweet of you, Nic. Such a sweetness has taken you over, it’s amazing .”

“I know what hell feels like now. I want no part of the ugly darkness I used to crave. You are a ray of light in the world I thought of as dark and sinister. The fact is, life is what you make it. You want it dark, it will be dark. You want it light, it will be light. I want you and I want to live life in the light .”

I hold his hand and lean into his side as we go to the elevator. “I want to live life with you in the light too .”

His lips press against the top of my head as the elevator doors open and my father steps out of it. “Well, there you are. We have all the other women’s statements. Yours is all we need to wrap this up. With Hawthorne in federal custody, no judge can set him free. All of you are safe from the man .”

“Good to hear,” Nic says. “Who do we need to talk to ?”

“Granger is going to get your statement. And you won’t believe how many calls we’ve had pointing fingers at you Nic. Various crimes have been reported .”

My body tenses. “Dad! You can’t …”

He stops me as he holds up his hand. “We know Hawthorne is behind all of that. He has been for some time it seems. Hence, why we were always investigating your company. That’s all over now. You can stop looking over your shoulder for us, Nic. But you still need to keep a tight leash on that company of yours. You got me ?”

Nic nods. “I got you. Thank you, sir. I’d like to speak with you in private when you have the time. I’d like to do it today, if possible , sir .”

Nic is talking with such reverence to my father. I have to say, I thought he’d be mad at him for causing us both so much pain. He’s surprising me in every way .

“Sure, Nic. I’m grabbing a coffee then I’ll be back. Tasha’s going to have to give her statement alone anyway. We need the women to feel one hundred percent safe telling us everything so they’re interviewed alone. You understand, right?” Dad asks .

“I do. I’ll talk to you when you get back then,” Nic says, then we get in the elevator .

Once the doors close, I find curiosity taking me over. “What do you want to talk to my dad about ?”

Turning toward me, he pulls me into his arms and rubs his nose to mine. “Don’t you worry about that, my princess. You just worry about making sure you give every last bit of evidence you have against Hawthorne to the feds so we can be rid of him .”

I know he’s got something up his sleeve but for some reason doesn’t want me to know about it. “I hate secrets .”

“I like them,” he says and chuckles as the elevator doors open and he lets me out of his hold and takes my hand, leading me out .

“Natasha Greenwell, I’m agent Granger,” a man in a black suit and tie greets me. I shake his extended hand then he turns to Nic and shakes his. “Mr. Grimm, nice to see you again, under better circumstances .”

“Nice to see you too. It’s nice to be on the other side of the FBI for a change,” Nic says then runs his arm around me and kisses the side of my head. “I guess I’ll leave her in your hands, Agent Granger. I’ll be here in the waiting area .”

“I’ll need to talk to you next, Grimm,” the agent says as he ushers me into his small office .

Nic gives him a nod and me a small wave. “Tell the man every detail, leave nothing out, princess .”

I nod and the agent closes the door, leaving me alone with him. When his hand touches the small of my back in a gesture to be seated, it sends waves of unease through me. I can see I’m going to have some residual effects from my ordeal. It has me thinking everything won’t be all rainbows and butterflies for me the way I hoped it would be .

Can everything ever be normal for me again ?

NICHOLAI

A calm washes over me as Natasha’s father steps out of the elevator and smiles when he sees me sitting in the waiting room outside of Granger’s office. “Good, she’s giving him her statement. Her words will cement the case against him. And I had something to ask you, Grimm. It’s about that paper you were holding that you said was a bond between you and my daughter. You’d told me there was no such thing between you two .”

I feel a bit awkward talking about this but I forge ahead anyway. “That was a document I had drawn up but we never signed. I signed her name to the last page and brought it with me to the ceremony just in case I ran into any trouble saying she wasn’t a free woman. You’d have to understand that culture, sir. It’s not the mainstream. In that lifestyle, some women belong to men. But Natasha was a free woman, she always was and always will be .”

He nods and sips his coffee. “I get it. I’m not cool with the initial document being brought up in the first place, though .”

“That’s far behind me. I swear that to you. I did go to the club to play poker and decompress one night in the last year. The scene left me flat and I don’t plan on going back to it as any form of entertainment. I am going to continue my membership, though .”

“Why in the hell would you do that?” he asks as he frowns at me .

“Only to make sure the rules are changed and adhered to. That’s the only reason. I want to help protect the people who enjoy that lifestyle. I know you don’t get it but some people like it. It won’t stop the club just because I quit it. I need to oversee things there. Now that I know a thing like what Hawthorne pulled can happen .”

“When you explain it like that, I understand you much better,” he says and takes a seat a few chairs down from me. “Is Natasha okay? I mean the places on her back looked bad .”

“I put some ointment on them. They’re superficial. They’ll heal in about a week. I’m taking her to have a thorough check-up as soon as possible. I want her healthy .”

“Me too. I have felt extremely guilty about not paying attention to the fact her body became dependent on the drugs I told them to use daily to keep her calm while I had her held at the castle,” he tells me .

“I had no idea that had happened. That’s not good at all. I’ll call my personal physician to come this evening to see to her,” I say as I push down the anger I’m feeling at him for having done such a thing .

“That would be great. Can I trust you, Grimm, to take good care of my daughter ?”

I want to tell him I am more trustworthy than he’s ever been but that would be negative and I want only positives in this conversation. “Yes, you can trust me. As a matter of fact, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” I pull the engagement ring out of my pocket. I bought it for Natasha a year ago and show it to him. “With your blessing, I’d like to ask your daughter to become my wife. I’d like to marry her sooner rather than later if you can agree to that , sir .”

He looks at the ring for a while. “That thing probably cost more than my house and two cars, doesn’t it ?”

“It is a valuable piece of jewelry , sir .”

He looks at me for a minute then he looks away and takes a sip of his coffee. I don’t like how long he’s taking to answer me. My nerves are getting twitchy and my palms are beginning to sweat .

“She isn’t the sweet girl you think she is, Nicholai. I thought she was once myself, but she isn’t. I think you’re in love with the fact she seems sweet and innocent but she’s not that. When you see her with all her flaws, you may not want her and that’s what I’m afraid of. I know men like you. You put women on a pedestal. Tasha is flawed. I’m just afraid she’ll disappoint you and you two will end up in a loveless marriage .”

And just what the hell does that mean ?

The Beginning Part Eight

N ATASHA

The cab ride back to Nic’s home was made in silence. As we step off the elevator to go into his apartment, I feel a chill in the air. “It’s pretty cold up here,” I say as Nic leads me by the hand to the door .

“The heating may have broken up here. Hopefully, someone in my staff reported the problem,” he says as he unlocks and opens the door .

It’s so cold in the room, we can see our breath. “No one’s here,” I say as it’s obvious .

“It’s Christmas! I forgot that I let them all off. Damn, it’s cold in here,” he says as he pulls me along with him to check the thermostat. “It’s off. Who the hell would turn it all the way off ?”

“I don’t know but hurry and turn it back on,” I say with chattering teeth. “It’s freezing in here .”

He seems flustered and aggravated by the mishap. “This is really lax of my staff. I will see that whoever did this will be reprimanded. Don’t worry .”

“I’m not worried and I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. It’ll be warm in here soon and we won’t even think about it. Come on, we can get naked and get under the blanket in your bed,” I say to take his mind off the cold air in the room .

“I have my personal physician coming to see to you, Natasha. There will be no sex until she makes sure you’re healthy enough for that. Your father told me about you having withdrawals from a drug he had you on, a sedative. Why did you keep that from me?” he asks with a frown on his handsome face .

“I didn’t keep it from you. It’s been mere hours since we’ve seen one another. There hasn’t been time to give you every last detail of the last year.” I let his hand go and go to the bar to find something to warm me up .

His hand on my shoulder stops me. “And what are you doing ?”

“Getting myself a drink. You want one?” I ask him as he looks oddly at me .

“It’s nine in the morning, Natasha .”

Shaking my head, I say, “I had no idea what time it was. That is much too early to have a drink. You’re right. I just thought it would help to ease the chill in my body. That’s all. I wasn’t looking to get snookered .”

His eyes narrow as he looks at me. Then he takes my hand and pulls me to the kitchen. “I’ll make us some hot chocolate. That too can get the chill out of your body. And while I make it, you can tell me everything. I want to hear it all .”

“I am so tired, Nic. When’s this doctor coming?” I ask as he pulls a chair out at the small table in the kitchen and I sit down. “I’ve been up forever. I’m exhausted .”

“She’ll be here shortly. I don't suppose it will take long.. Then we can sleep.” He pulls out the milk and a small saucepan to heat it in. “Did Hawthorne give you any drugs while he had you ?”

“No,” I tell him as I pull my gloves off and rub my hands together. “He sent a woman to give me a birth control shot but she didn’t do it. She said she had to take my blood and test it first. She took a vial of it and I didn’t see her again .”

“Put those gloves back on, Natasha,” he tells me as he glances at me and sees me rubbing my hands together .

“This is working much better,” I say and see him give me that look I forgot he has. The one that silently tells me not to question him or talk back and just do as he says .

I pull the gloves back on though. I haven’t the strength to argue with him at this point. I need rest and I need it now !

“Good girl,” he says then opens a drawer, retrieving a metal whisk to stir the milk .

I don’t say anything as that pretty much pisses me off. I watch him in silence as he prepares the drinks. He gives me quick glances now and again and it has me thinking he’s got something he’d like to say or ask but is having a hard time bringing himself to do it .

“You’re acting strange,” I finally say when he brings the cups of hot chocolate to the table and sits across from me .

“Am I?” he asks as he blows over the surface of one of the cups then places it in front of me. “Don’t drink it yet, it’s very hot. You can use the warm cup to help warm your hands up.” He places my gloved hands around the cup and smiles at me . “See .”

“Yes, I’m not a moron!” I snap at him. “You’re treating me like a child, Nic. Stop it !”

His eyes go wide with my outburst then he looks down. “Tell me about your past, Natasha. Tell me why you had no boyfriend when we met. What had you all alone ?”

“I was way too busy with my school work is what had me all alone.” I venture to take a sip of the creamy looking drink .

“Not yet,” he says as he looks over his cup at me. “Before college, did you have a boyfriend ?”

Shaking my head, I answer him, “No. I wasn’t into boys my age. I liked older men. Being that I was underage had my hands tied. So, I ended up not dating anyone. When I was twenty, I dated one of my professors. He was ten years older than I was .”

“What ended that?” he asks me .

“His wife,” I say and laugh a little. “I had no idea he was married .”

“Is that a thing that’s a definite no-no with you?” he asks and watches my reaction a bit too intensely .

“What, the man I’m dating being married ?”

He nods . “Yes .”

“Of course,” I say and sip the drink that’s cooled enough. “Why do you ask that ?”

“I’ll be honest with you as I do hate games and I feel like I’m playing with you instead of being straightforward. Your father told me how you broke up a man’s marriage when you were sixteen. He told me how he thought the man had come on to you and he nearly killed him. He told me he caught you giving the man a blowjob and you remained silent all these years. But recently, you told him it was you who initiated the act.” He stops talking and just looks at me .

I am stunned my father told him all of that. “My God! I can’t believe he told you that !”

“He had his reasons. And now I want to know something. Is this your true character? Are you a woman who cares not if she wrecks a home? Or are you the woman I came to know, respect, and love ?”

Shuddering as I feel him judging me, I wrap my arms around myself. “I don’t know what the hell to say to that, Nic. You, yourself, told me I had a darkness inside of me. It was you who said that to me. It was you who tried to bring that out in me and now you sit here and look at me as a judge and jury. Well, I don’t like it one bit. And to be judged by you is preposterous !”

“At least I am upfront and honest about my past. You seem to want to keep yours hidden. Is that the kind of person you are? One who dabbles in the dark and wants to keep it hidden as you walk around with your head held high, though you don’t deserve to ?”

Getting up, quickly, I find the chair falling to the floor as I make my exit out of the kitchen. “I’m not doing this right now. I don’t have the fucking strength to do this with you .”

He’s right behind me, his hand touches my shoulder. “Where are you going ?”

“To bed. In the guest room. The one that was to be mine if I signed your bond. I want to be alone,” I tell him as I keep moving. “You can send the doctor in when she gets here. Just leave me alone .”

“You’ve been alone far too much this last year. Get into our bed.” He steers me to his bedroom and I find myself fuming mad at him .

As we get to the door, I turn around and glare at him. “I won’t be coming back to a relationship where you dominate me. I’ve been lorded over for far too long. I am weak right now. I will get stronger, though. And I will never be dominated again. Do you understand me? I may not be the woman for you any longer. I am not the same person .”

His eyes go soft. The hardness that had reigned over his expression has all but disappeared. His lips fall softly on my forehead. “I am sorry. You go into the bedroom and rest. Get undressed. I’ll send the doctor in when she gets here. I am sorry, Natasha. Things are so unsettled. I yearn for them to be settled and our lives going forward .”

With a nod, I place my hands on his chest. “I am not in a state to make promises I can’t keep. I have a road ahead of me. One where I need emotional help as well as physical. I want you to know, I understand if I am too much for you to handle right now. I can go live with my parents .”

“We’ll see,” he says then opens the door and ushers me into the room. “For now, you undress and climb into bed and soon the doctor will be here to start helping you get better .”

I walk into the room, alone, as he closes the door and leaves me. I have to wonder if the doctor can help me at all as I feel lost and very helpless. I hope I don’t push Nic away just to protect myself from any more pain. That’s the last thing I want to do but I feel it welling up inside of me. Self-preservation .

NICHOLAI

As I close the door to the bedroom, leaving Natasha alone as she requested, I get the distinct impression she has many things haunting her right now. I don’t like it and I don’t like how I am handling any of this .

When her father told me about her past, I was shocked. I know I shouldn’t have been. It was me who knew she had something hidden inside of her after all. But hearing it out loud that she purposely seduced a married man, ending his marriage and family as well as getting his ass royally kicked by her father, well that left a mark on my soul .

She is not the sweet and nearly innocent women I thought she was. And why that’s bothering me so much is a complete mystery. I am by far no innocent. But I am not hiding anything either .

I play with the box in my pocket that holds the engagement ring I meant to give her today and have to hold back. It’s not the right time. Things are up in the air. Her spirit is weak as is her handle on life right now .

Making my way to the elevator to have the ring placed in a safe deposit box I have on the ground floor of the building, I find myself feeling a bit sad about things .

Nothing is working out as planned. I thought she and I would fall into each other’s arms and everything else would melt away. I was wrong. She has been drugged and neglected and even worse when she was in Hawthorne’s hands .

Liz is working the desk I see as I get off the elevator. “Can I have the key to the room where the safe deposit boxes are. I need to put something in mine ?”

“Merry Christmas, Mr. Grimm,” she says with a smile .

“Oh! Yes, I forgot. Merry Christmas , Liz .”

She hands me the key. “Did you buy your lady something valuable for Christmas , sir ?”

I nod then say, “I did. But I changed my mind about giving it to her. She’s in a frail state. Now is not the time .”

“Were you going to ask her to marry you, Mr. Grimm?” she asks and I find her curiosity annoying .

I simply walk away instead of biting her head off for being so intrusive. It is Christmas after all .

As I open the safety deposit box, I find the few things I keep in there, staring up at me. My grandparents’ wedding set is in here. My mother gave it to me when her mother passed on a few years back. She told me to keep it and maybe one day hand it down to one of my children .

The thought of having children had been on my mind a little over a year ago. I was going to ask Natasha to marry me on Christmas of last year but she had been taken away and that never happened .

I had so many plans that were halted. She’s so weak. Her body is much too frail to ask her to have children anytime in the next year. All my dreams and hopes have been dashed. And I have a couple of men I can blame for that. But then again, perhaps it’s Natasha’s own karma that got in our way .

Perhaps the fact she broke up a marriage means she’s not to have one. Or maybe she will have one in which someone will come along and break hers up. I would be the victim in that scenario. The role of victim is not one I like to play .

Pushing my thoughts aside, I place the black box inside and close it up, locking it away again. I was so sure this was the right time to ask her but things couldn’t be worse .

As I walk out of the room, I find the doctor coming inside the large stained glass doors. Bits of snow come in with her and she brushes off her coat on the mat .

“Hello Sandra,” I greet her .

She looks up and smiles at me. “Hi Nicholai. How are you ?”

I take her hand and lead her to the elevator. “Not great. Glad you’re here .”

She kisses my cheek, a thing I didn’t use to allow her to do when she was my slave over three years ago. She stopped that lifestyle and with that, she began to treat me the way she wanted to .

I kiss her cheek back and run my arm around her shoulders, pulling her in for a hug as the elevator doors close. “What’s wrong?” she whispers as I hold her to me .

“So many things, Sandra. So many,” I say as I can’t stop hugging her .

“Nicholai, I talked to your father. He told me about what happened to the young woman. It’s a tragedy but she’ll be fine. I’ll make sure of that .”

I let her out of my tight hug and run my hand over her dark hair. “I can’t explain it all to you. It’s hard for me to take it all in. I love her but what she’s been through may have made huge changes in her. She’s dead set on there being no domination by me and I can’t stop that entirely. It’s how I was raised .”

She nods and seems to understand me. “I’ll talk to her as well as examine her .”

“She may not tell you this, she didn’t tell me. It was her father who told me. He had her locked up for over a year. He had the people who were watching over her, give her sedatives three times a day for that entire time. She’s been off them about four days now .”

Her eyes droop with sadness. “How terrible for her. I think she should also see a psychiatrist .”

“Me too. I’ll get that all set up for her,” I say as I open the door to my apartment .

“About how she’s changed, Nicholai. You should give this thing some time between you two. I know you’re a man who’s never been in love. To say you love her is a huge thing where you’re concerned. Don’t make any hasty decisions, either way. She’ll need time and you will too .”

I nod and take her to the bedroom. “She’s in here .”

Sandra stops as she sees I’ve let Natasha come into my bedroom. “You allow her in your personal bedroom?” she asks with a frown .

“Yes,” I say and watch the pain spread over her face .

“Nicholai, can I ask you a question ?”

“You may,” I say and take her chin in my hand to get her to look at me as she was looking down .

“Why her? What did she have that I didn’t?” she asks me as tears pool behind her dark eyes .

“I cannot explain it at all. She had an unbreakable spirit that I admired. But I’m afraid that spirit has been broken and she seems to fight like a dog that’s been chained up and she looks at me like I am trying to chain her up again .”

“If she can’t be who you want anymore, would you ever think of giving me a chance again? In a normal relationship, not like what we had before.” Her eyes search mine and I find myself feeling bad about what I have to tell her .

“Sandra, you are a magnificent woman. Any man would be lucky to have you. I wish I could tell you what you want to hear. My heart beats only for Natasha. If she’s changed into a person I cannot live with or a person who cannot live with me, it will leave me very broken. You wouldn’t want a broken man, now would you ?”

She shakes her head. “I see it in your eyes. You love her. You really do. I’ll go take care of her for you. I’ll do all I can to get her to see your love for her is real and you won’t hurt her. You won’t, right ?”

“I will never hurt her,” I tell her, then open the door. “Thank you, Sandra .”

Natasha is asleep I see as Sandra goes to her. “I’ll wake her up. Wish me luck, Nicholai .”

I nod and close the door. Leaning my back against it, I wonder if I will ever get to be happy. Will things ever work out right for me ?

NATASHA

“You don’t seem to understand me, Doc. I want to get better, I do,” I say .

He looks at me with a knowing smile on his thin lips. “Tasha, it’s been nearly an entire year of me seeing you once a week. And still, you refuse to let me in completely. I cannot help you if you don’t. Should I find another psychiatrist for you ?”

“I don’t want to start from ground zero with anyone new. I’ve already lost so much. I can’t stand to be around people. I can’t stand to be alone but I am always alone. Nothing makes me happy. No one makes me happy. I can’t start over, Doc. I just need your help to break through this barrier inside of myself. I’ve pushed everyone away. Help me,” I plead with the man .

“It’s there, within you, Tasha. You say constantly that you forgive your father for what he did to you .”

I stop him. “Because I do .”

“You don’t,” he says, simply. “How could you? He took your world away from you. You had to go into rehab for six months to let your body recuperate from the addiction it had to those sedatives. You lost the man you love because you were drinking heavily to take the place of the sedatives. That is one person’s fault. And it’s not yours. So, blame who is responsible instead of holding it all in and lying to yourself about forgiveness you do not have for the one who caused all of that .”

“It does no good to blame others for your own problems,” I say. “I’ve been told that all of my life .”

“By the man who did this to you, Tasha. Come to grips with it. Your father changed you and your life. You were able to blame James Hawthorne for his part in your emotional upheaval. You accepted the settlement that made you a wealthy woman. You testified against him in court and faced your demon head one where that man is concerned. Now it’s time to face your father and let him know he hurt you and you want an apology. You want retribution for what he did to you. You got it from Hawthorne, now get it from your father .”

“I can’t do that,” I tell him for the hundredth or so time. He wants me to do a thing that’s impossible .

“Until you do, then you will continue to stay stagnant. Not growing, not moving on with life. You’ve managed to conquer the alcohol that controlled you. You’ve managed to live life on your own terms as you refused to allow anyone to control any of your actions. And how’s that working out for you?” he asks with a grin. “How do you like making all of your own decisions? All of your own plans without anyone’s interference? No one tells you what to do at all. How does that feel ?”

I’d love nothing more than to tell the man it feels wonderful but I’d be lying and he’d know that. “It’s terrible. Yes, I can make my own plans. You know what they are, day after day? What shows to watch on television. What books to read alone when I get to bed. No one tells me a thing. No one tells me they love me. No one asks for my kisses. No one says a thing to me or tells me to do anything because I walked away .”

The tears start flowing as they always do when I remind myself that I got exactly what I told Nic I wanted. I got a life with no one dominating me. Somewhere along the way, I got it in my head that everything he said or did was some type of domination. It got so bad that when he asked me to change the channel of the show I wasn’t even watching as I was also reading a book, I threw the remote at him and had a screaming fit that he was trying to control me and I left his home that very night .

He watched me pack my things and leave his home. He never said a word. He didn’t tell me to stop. He didn’t tell me to stay. He just watched me leave. He let me leave him .

I suppose he was sick of me. Sick of my drinking. Sick of my constant quick temper when I even remotely thought he was bossing me around .

I blew it and I know it was all me who did that .

“He came in today. He had a session a few hours before yours. I always make sure to keep your appointments far apart so you two don’t run into one another here,” he tells me, making my heart ache .

“How is he?” I ask as I wipe the tears away with the tissue I always have at the ready when I come to see the psychiatrist Nic still pays for me to see .

“He’s okay. He’s sad. His life hasn’t turned out the way he wanted it to. He asks about you every time he comes. He wanted me to relay a message to you. Would you like to hear it or not? It’s up to you,” he asks me .

“No, don’t tell me anything. He’s the past. I’m not looking at the past,” I say as I set my mind. I have to move forward .

“If you never look in your past then you will never learn from it and be able to be the person you can be. I’m not asking you to forget you father by making it known you find him responsible for what happened to you. I am telling you when you admit that to yourself and tell him what you think then you will feel a weight lift off your shoulders. Only then will you be able to deal with life on terms you can live with .”

“So, tell my father and myself he’s the reason my life went to hell in a handbasket?” I nod. “I can try, right ?”

“That’s all you can do, is try,” he tells me and puts his pad of paper and pen away. “Session is over for this week. See you next week .”

I nod and give my eyes a final wipe then get up and leave his office. Taking a deep breath, I walk to the elevator and get in it. It’s full of people and I always find myself having trouble breathing in the crowds .

New York has crowds everywhere you go and I should really move. But my work is easier here. I work from home as a consultant. I finished my degree online. I do freelance consulting from home. Occasionally, I do have to meet people and it’s easier to meet in this big city than anywhere else .

With the money from the settlement from James’ family, I don’t have to work at all. But it gives me something to do besides hide in a book or movie to forget about my real life .

As I step out of the elevator, I hear a familiar voice. “I think I left my sunglasses up there. Can you call up and ask him ?”

I freeze in place as I know it’s Nic. It’s been months since I’ve set eyes on him. Looking straight down at the floor, I make my way to the door. Each step gets me that much closer to not having the agony fill me that surely will if I see him. Then a chill rips through my body as a hand touches the small of my back. “Natasha, hello .”

My chest fills with sobs that beg to be released. My heart pounds with joy as my body has begged for me to go back to the man it loves. It’s my mind that refuses to believe it. It’s my mind that holds me back .

I can’t speak as he ushers me out the door with him. Through cloudy, tear-filled eyes, I see the shadow of a black car and he has me in the back seat before I know what’s happening .

His arms go around me and I let it all out in the privacy of the car. I cry and moan as my hands run up his arms, over his biceps where they loved to rest when he held his body over mine .

His hands stroke my back as he shushes me. “It’s okay, princess .”

It’s anything but okay and he knows that. He knows it as well as I do. I am a shell of who I was and neither of us can stand who I’ve become. I press my hands to his chest. “Don’t. This just makes things harder, Nic. Let me out of the car .”

“I’m not about to set you out on the sidewalk with tears streaming down your face,” he says as he continues to hold me tight .

I break down again as it’s so damn good to hear him boss me around. Telling me how he’s going to take care of me even when I’m trying to make self-sabotaging choices for myself .

Running my arms around him, I hold him too. “I love you,” I say in a whisper .

“I know you do,” he says then kisses the top of my head. “I love you too .”

Suddenly it becomes clear what I have to do. I have to get better. I have to follow the doctor’s orders and I have to confront my father. This is ridiculous what I’m doing to us both. “Can you take me to see my father? I have something I need to tell him .”

“Is he here, in New York?” he asks as he pushes me back so he can look at me .

I nod and already hate myself for feeling the need to curl back into his wide chest and pull from his body what only it can give me. Peace, hope, and the feeling of absolute safety .

“Right now or later?” he asks .

“I think now is best.” I hand him my phone. “Can you call him and see if he’s available for me ?”

He takes it and finds my father’s number. “Hi, Greenwell. This is Nicholai Grimm. I have Natasha with me and she wants to talk to you. I don’t suppose you can make yourself available to her soon, can you ?”

I hear my father say on the other end of the line, “I’m at my friend’s place. Let me see about meeting her for lunch .”

With a shake of my head, I say, “I can’t do it in public .”

“How about you come to my place. She’d like to talk with you in private,” Nic tells him .

“Text me the address and I’ll be there shortly,” Dad says. “Why are you calling me from her phone? Why can’t she do it ?”

“Because she asked me to do it and I always do anything she asks of me. See you soon,” Nic says then hands me my phone back. “Did you get my message I told the doctor to give you ?”

“I told him not to tell me .”

“Why?” he asks as he lifts my chin .

“Because it hurts too much to think about you,” I say then bite my lip .

“Maybe that’s because you love me and want to be with me but that stubborn brain of yours is getting in our way.” He smiles to lessen the blow .

“I know it is. I can see that now. I mean, I knew it was, but now I can really see it. I need to resolve things with my father. I’ve been hiding that inside of me. Hiding the fact he was the one who did this to me. Even James wouldn’t have been able to get to me if I hadn’t been in that weakened condition .”

He nods, letting me know this is my decision and he will leave me to it. It’s not his usual way. He’s often told me I needed to fight with whoever I had an issue with instead of him. I took out too much on Nic. I can see it now, in hindsight .

I just hope talking to my father works the way the doc said it would. I can’t take life this way any longer. Something has to change !

NICHOLAI

Natasha sits in a chair near the Christmas tree by the window. The red and green lights bounce off her golden hair and make my heart hurt that it’s been so long since I’ve last laid my eyes on her sweet face .

My poor Natasha has been in mental hell since she came back to New York. Her stay with me didn’t last long as she became aggravated by everything I did or said. Hell, even my breathing made her angry .

When she packed up one night after me asking her to change the channel on the television, I let her go. I didn’t know what else to do for her. Nothing I was doing was working. She was hiding the fact she was drinking heavily. Not well, mind you. I knew she was drunk only she’d never admit to drinking anything .

Even when I retrieved empty bottles from the bathroom trash, a place she assumed I’d never go looking for anything, she’d deny it was her. She’d blame the staff .

I emptied out the bar so she’d have nothing to drink. But she had bottles delivered to her while I was at work. She had no idea the front desk told me about it .

Thankfully, her moving out had her deciding to seek professional help and she checked herself into rehab for a while. I haven’t seen her since she left me that night, almost a year ago .

I’d told our psychiatrist to give her a message. I wanted her to join me for Christmas. I’d heard from her mother and father that she’d cut them out too. She wanted to be alone, her mother told me .

I had no choice but to respect her wishes as she learned how to throw a hellacious fit when she thought I was trying to control her or boss her around about anything .

But now she’s sitting here, in my living room, waiting for her father to come and talk to her. I’ve known for some time that her problem was with him more so than anyone else. She’d argue that he was only trying to protect her. He was being a father to her and I just didn’t understand .

I do understand, though. I have my own issues with the man. While I may see why he did what he did, I have never agreed with his actions. Natasha, on the other hand, has said, over and over again, that she forgives him and has from the very start .

“Tea, Natasha?” I ask as she looks out the window .

“That would be nice,” she says and gets up to push the curtain to the side. “The view is so gorgeous up here .”

The bar has been restocked since she left but I have some tea brewing at it. I’m not sure she’s supposed to drink anymore. “How is the view in your new place ?”

“I don’t know. The windows have dark curtains on them,” she says, making me think she’s been holing herself up with only the television and books as her company .

“The message I wanted to get to you was about coming for Christmas. Father will be busy with his new girlfriend and her kids this year. Mother is off to Spain with her new beau. And I will be utterly alone if you deny me your company, my princess .”

Her hand moving down my arm makes my insides quiver with need. “Why would you still call me your princess, Nic? I’ve been terrible to you .”

Turning to her, I run the back of my hand over her cheek. “You haven’t been you, Natasha. You will always be my princess. I know we’ve never made any marriage vows but I do take you for better or worse .”

“And all I’ve given you is worse,” she says with a sadness to her blue eyes that I hate to see .

“Not true,” I say and take her cup of tea in one hand, her hand in the other and take her to sit on the sofa where I sit next to her. Her collar is askew and I fix it for her then leave a kiss on her cheek. “So, about Christmas ?”

“Maybe,” she says. “I’ll have to see if this helps me .”

“What? Talking to your father?” I ask as I pick the tea up and blow over the surface, making the steam swirl .

She nods and takes the cup from me. “Is it ready to drink ?”

“I think so,” I tell her. “You might want to test it with your pinky first to be sure it suits you .”

She does and I find myself overjoyed that she didn’t have a shit-fit about me telling her what she might like to do. As a matter of fact, her asking me anything is a major change .

“If you decide to come for the holiday, I’ll come and get you. I’ll have the cook make us up anything you want for dinner. Anything at all. Lobster? Turkey?” I ask as I watch her set the cup back down and smile .

It’s been so long since I’ve seen her smile. “Pot roast would be great .”

“That sounds like a yes to my invitation,” I say then smile back at her .

“Get her to make the pot roast and I’ll think about it,” she says. “Will there be a sleepover that night ?”

I stop breathing as she brings that up. It’s been a damn long time since I’ve touched her. A damn long time. Over two years. It’s been over two years since I’ve had sex at all .

Her words have my hormones unsteady. They want to go crazy but they know it might not happen. She’s been back and forth with me in that department .

We’d get so close then I’d do something to make her mad and off she’d go to the other room to sleep. I measure my words as I say, “I am always available to you. You know that .”

She nods and looks away. “It’s been me who has been unavailable to you. Tell me, Nic, have you had anyone else since me ?”

“No,” comes my quick answer. “I have no want for anyone else .”

“Not even with me leaving you?” she asks as she continues to look away. “Not even with the pretty Doctor Sandra ?”

“No. No one at all. My heart is yours. I assume it always will be,” I tell her and draw her face to mine .

One sweet kiss I leave on her plump lips. She’s regained her healthy weight and she looks incredible again. Our mouths move together, tongues entwine, saying hello and how they’ve missed one another .

Her body melts into mine and then the doorbell rings. Reluctantly, I end the kiss with a few smaller ones to tell her I enjoyed it. “Your father .”

I get up and go to answer the door as I’ve given the staff the day off to do their Christmas errands. “Greenwell,” I say as I open the door .

“Grimm. Where is she?” he says as he takes a step inside .

I turn around and gesture to the sofa but she isn’t there. “Well, she was right there. Let me see if she went to the bathroom. Have a seat .”

Making my way to the bathroom, I hear her crying inside of it. I tap at the door. “May I come in ?”

“Leave me alone, Nic. I can’t do it. I can’t face him and tell him what I would have to. I can’t !”

I find the door unlocked and go inside anyway. Taking her by the shoulders, I hold her steady. “I know I’m risking a tongue lashing but I’ll risk it for you. You need to do whatever it is you were planning on doing. I am here for you. If you want me in the room or at your side or if you want me to leave, I will do anything you want. But you need to do this. If it’s making you cry, then you must face it and get on with things. Fear is to be faced or it’s never overcome. Now let me dry your tears and let’s get on with this .”

She gulps back her cries and lets me wipe her tears away. “Why do I let myself do without you ?”

“Ask yourself that question. I have no idea. I think I’m fantastic,” I say then smile at her. With a light pat on her ass, I send her out of the confines of the bathroom. “Where do you want me, my princess ?”

“At me side, please. I’m becoming more and more aware that I should never have left your side at all. You are my champion, my hero .”

I try hard not to allow myself to have hope she’s about to return to me. I’ve been so crushed by her so many times. But hope is seeping in all on its own .

As we enter the living room, I find her saying, “Dad, we have to talk .”

And here we go .

NATASHA

My knees are shaking as I look at my father and hold tightly to Nic’s hand. “What do you want to talk about, Tasha?” Dad asks me .

“I’ve been holding things back and it’s made me weak and fragile and I’m sick of being that way,” I say as he looks up at me .

He crosses his legs and looks at Nic. “You got anything to drink around here? This looks like a real headache coming my way .”

Nic looks at me then at my father. “In light of her rehabilitation, I think that’s a bad idea , sir .”

“Fine,” Dad says with a huff. “Get on with it , girl .”

The words are right there, wanting to be set free. My mind is shrieking at me not to do it. It will hurt my father when I hurl accusations at him and no one ever wants to hurt their father .

After a long moment of me not saying a word, only looking out the window and thinking I should just go. Nic’s hand gives mine a squeeze. “I think she’d like to have an apology, Greenwell .”

“For?” my father asks as he looks at me .

I hold my breath as anger starts to build inside of me. Nic senses it and takes me by the chin. “You can do this. For yourself, you need to do it. Not for anyone else. Only for you. You can do it. Open your mouth and let the words flow .”

Parting my lips, I look into his dark eyes and wonder how I got so damn lucky. Then I look at my father. “Dad, you are the only one to blame for everything that happened to me. You are the one who got me addicted to drugs. I then had an alcohol problem because of that. I was taken as a man’s slave because I was approached by him and made decisions with a cluttered and muddled mind thanks to those drugs. I’ve yet to hear an apology for that .”

My father looks from me to Nic and back to me. “Did he tell you to do this to me ?”

“My mind told me to do this to you. Have you been so wrapped up in your whores to notice I am a shell of my former self?” I ask him, making his face go red .

“You have no idea about my private life, young lady. Watch how you speak to me,” he says then gets up. “I don’t have to endure this. I’m not at fault here. I was only trying to protect you. The monster is the man whose hand you’re holding. He brought you into a world I had to take you away from. And you have stayed out of that world, thanks to me. So, you will not get an apology from me .”

Letting Nic’s hand go, I walk up behind my father who thinks he’s leaving. “Turn around .”

He stops and does as I’ve asked but not in the way I meant him to. “You do not tell me what to do. I tell you what to do .”

“I am done with that. You took me out of all of the world, Dad. You really took me out of it. All I want is to be alone now. I can’t stand anything or anyone. Mostly, I can’t stand myself. And you did that to me .”

“You did some pretty awful things in your life, Tasha. I think you need some time away from the world to figure that out. You can only change once you’ve paid the price for those things you did,” he tells me .

“And what about you?” I ask. “Stringing that woman along, making her live from hotel to hotel while telling her you’re on the verge of leaving Mom. For years, you’ve done that to her. And what about the other women ?”

“My personal affairs are none of your concern. Your mother and I handle our business,” he says. “I need to go .”

“You can go. If you want to leave things like this. I’ve told you how I feel. If you don’t want to accept your responsibility, then that’s up to you. And as far as paying for my mistakes, I think I’ve done that. In spades.” I point to the door. “So, there you go. There it is. Walk away from me without uttering a word of remorse for what you did to me. I only wanted to hear you say you were sorry for the atrocities you pulled down on me. But I just found out, I don’t need it at all. Just speaking the words out loud to you are all I ever needed to do .”

“Great for you,” he says as he walks around me. “Glad you took that weight off your back and put it on mine. Hope you feel like a real hero, Tasha .”

“I do,” I say as I watch him go. “I really do. You can pull that weight off with a simple word. You can say it anytime you want and you will be absolved of that burden. Until you do, you will carry it the way I have been for over two years. Consider it my Christmas gift to you. You carry it around for a while. It’s one heavy bitch !”

I step around him and open the door for him so he has to see me as he leaves. He doesn’t bother to look at me as he walks past me. I feel fine. I feel more than fine that he’s mad .

“Good, be mad!” I call out after him. “I’ve been mad for a fucking long time. Your turn, Daddy !”

I close the door and turn to find Nic looking at me with wide eyes. He claps his hands slowly. “Bravo! There’s that little spitfire I fell in love with .”

With a big smile on my face, I walk up to him and grab him by the hand. “You’re coming with me .”

He follows along behind me as I take him out of the living room, toward his bedroom. “Where are you taking me ?”

“To Heaven,” I say as I throw open the door and take him inside .

“Finally!” he shouts then picks me up and carries me the rest of the way to the bed. “Now this is what I’m talking about !”

I only pray this powerful feeling stays with me .

NICHOLAI

Two years of waiting made for three days and nights of making up for lost time. I’ve yet to let her leave the confines of the bedroom and bathroom. Making little trips to get us food and drinks from the kitchen have seen me right back in bed and pulling her back into my embrace .

Placing a purple grape to her kiss-swollen lips, I tell her, “We’ll have to get out of bed today. It’s Christmas. Your pot roast is cooking with all the sides and I want us to get dressed up and spend our first real Christmas together. Last years was a bust .”

“It was. So, you wash me and I’ll wash you and then we’ll get dressed. I’m as sore as I’ve ever been but it’s a great feeling,” she says as she rolls on top of me to get out of the bed .

I hold her for a moment. “One more kiss .”

She smiles and kisses the tip of my nose. “Any more than that and you know we’ll be stuck in bed for another hour or so .”

“I do,” I say, then get up and carry her to the shower .

The way her body feels as I move my soapy hands over her has me all types of excited but I tamp it down so I can get to the place I want to be. I’m happy as hell to have her back in my life. But I want that to be permanent .

Before I realize it, my hands are on her round ass and I’m pushing her up against the warm tiles. My body is shaking as I wrap her legs around me. She’s panting with desire and her eyes are full of lust mixed with love .

She groans as I fill her and moves with me as we work our bodies to please the other. “You have made me yours again, my prince,” she whispers in my ear then nips it, playfully .

Kissing my way down her neck, I say, “You’ve made me yours too. But then again, I always have been .”

I rock with her, making her grunt with each hard thrust. The warm air from her mouth hits the skin of my shoulder then her teeth graze over it. “I was a fool, but I’m not anymore .”

“You were never a fool, Natasha,” I say, and ease my movements as I look into her eyes. “You were never a fool. Let me hear you say that .”

“What was I then?” she asks me like there’s no other possible excuse .

“You were hurt. You were battered and bruised. Never apologize for that. It was not your fault. I love you. I want us to move on with life. We don’t have to live in the past.” I kiss her and find her mouth supple .

Her body is gyrating on mine and she’s giving me all she has to give. I give into her demands as we both find our release. Our breathing is loud and I love the way we sound together .

She is my one true love and she always will be .

NATASHA

The Christmas lights are the only light in the living room. The dinner was delicious and we are both stuffed. Lying on our backs, we’re looking up at the tree after opening the presents we gave each other. “I used to do this with my cousins when we were little kids,” I say as we gaze up at the pretty colors as they filter through the real tree .

“It’s very pretty under here,” he says then holds up my hand and looks at the large diamond ring he gave me when he asked me to marry him. “Yep, even pretty under green and red lights.” He kisses it, making me smile. “Thanks for saying yes so quickly and not making me sweat it out .”

“Yeah, well, I made you sweat for over two years. I thought you could use a break.” I say with a laugh .

“I did need one. So, off to Vegas we will go in a couple of weeks and then on to a three-month-long honeymoon,” he says. “And right to the baby-making .”

We tossed my birth control pills in the trash right after I said yes to him. It’s official, we are getting married and starting a family. I did not see this coming for us at all .

I can’t believe he stuck with me through everything I put him through. It did leave me with no doubt that when he says his vows I can take him for his word .

My cell phone starts ringing and I sigh as I roll out from under the tree. Nic comes along too. “I’m going to find another piece of pumpkin pie .”

I laugh as he goes off toward the kitchen and look at my phone to see it’s my father. “Hello .”

“Hey, I just wanted you to know that I heard what you said the other day and I didn’t want this night to end without me saying this to you .”

“What?” I say and have to hold my hand over my mouth so he doesn’t hear me crying already .

“I am sorry, baby girl,” he says, sending me into full-blown meltdown .

I melt into a puddle of tears on the sofa. “Thank you,” I manage to get out .

“You deserve it. I’ll do all I can to make it up to you. I swear it,” he says .

“Just be there for me, Dad. That’s all I ask. Nic and I are getting married .”

“Good,” he says. “That man really does love you .”

“He does and I love him,” I say, and find Nic coming into the room with a small plate of pie .

“What happened to you?” he asks me as he puts the plate down and runs his arms around me .

“Thank you, Dad. Bye and Merry Christmas.” I end the call and put the phone down, then wrap my arms around Nic. “This is the best Christmas ever .”

“He must’ve told you he was sorry, huh?” he asks with a chuckle .

“He did,” I say as I cry like a little baby. “I’m so happy .”

“Yeah, you sound like it,” he says and laughs then picks me up and puts me on his lap. “And you told him our news ?”

“I did and he was nice about it. Maybe things will finally start going better. We could use things to go well, for a while anyway. I’m not asking for more than my fair share of happiness .”

Taking the napkin he brought for the pie, he holds it to my nose. “Blow, princess. You’re a mess .”

I blow my nose and laugh as he helps tidy me up. I’ve come to see things in a different light where he’s concerned. He likes to pick out my clothes sometimes but it’s because he likes the way certain things look on me .

Feeling the same way, I pick out his clothes often too. It’s not as bad as I was making it out to be in the beginning. I thought he was thinking of me as his doll. His plaything. But when I started thinking about how good he looks in his jeans and asking him to wear them more often, he pointed that out to me .

He can still be dominatin,g and in the bedroom I love it. But he watches himself about certain things and he’s quick to change the way he says things so he doesn’t offend me or make me feel small .

I think the future with him will be bright. I believe he and I will learn from one another and grow as a couple. A team of two, who will have to worry over children together. A team who will make huge decisions together .

“That’s better,” he says as he puts the used napkin away. “How do you feel ?”

“I feel great. You’re going to make an excellent father, you know,” I tell him then kiss his cheek .

“With your help, I might be okay at it,” he says. “I haven’t had the best role model .”

“Neither have I. We can do our research and try to be better parents than those we had, I suppose. History doesn’t have to repeat itself, you know,” I say and wiggle on his lap. “And speaking of kids, are you ready to hit the sack with your brand new fiancée ?

He rubs his hands together in front of me. “Oh, yeah. You can wear that negligee I gave you and I’ll bring the whipped cream .”

“More food?” I say with a laugh as he gets up and carries me to the bedroom .

“The whipped cream is for your consumption, baby, not mine.” We laugh all the way to the bedroom then he closes the door behind us .

I think we might just work out after all .

EPILOGUE

N ICHOLAI

Natasha is rocking the baby, our fourth son, to sleep as I take the other three out for ice cream. Manhattan proved no easy place to raise a large family, so we moved .

Walking down the paved street to the local shop that has everything anyone could ever need, I find my friend, Nic, riding his bicycle towards our home. His arms wave wildly, making my sons laugh. “Where are you going? I was coming to see you .”

“To get ice cream,” Todd, our oldest says. “You come too !”

Nic hops off the bike, dropping it on the side of the road. “I come too. Yes! How’s your beautiful momma,” he asks Taylor, our next to oldest .

“Busy with Tyran. He’s a fussy baby today,” Taylor tells him .

Todd’s only ten but he thinks he’s twenty or so. “How’s your sister, Nic. Does she miss me?” He laughs as he goads Nic .

“She’s too old for you, Romeo,” he tells him as he messes up his dark, shaggy hair .

The boys all run ahead of me, spending up some of their energy. “Your mother is making something that smells like Heaven for our dinner tonight. She asked if she could invite her family to our home for dinner. Can you believe she asked me that?” I ask him as we walk along behind the kids .

“I cannot,” he says with a laugh. “What was she thinking ?”

“I know,” I say and punch him in the arm. “It’s not as if your family doesn’t eat nearly every night at our home. And we’d have it no other way. My wife loves your sisters and your mother .”

“I never asked you, Nicholai. Why did you decide to come back to Greece to live?” he asks me with a grin. “New York has much more to do .”

“That it does. But I kind of fell in love with this little town here. And when I brought Natasha for our honeymoon, she fell in love too. When the kids started to come and we knew we wanted more for them, it was a no-brainer. Move to Greece where everyone is made to feel like family .”

“We’re happy to have your family here too. Your help in making our family’s wine has been invaluable. Momma’s frozen dinners are selling like we never thought they would. So many people have jobs at the factory you built to produce those things. You are well-loved here, Nicholai,” he tells me .

The thing about living here with all of these people, is I know I’m well-loved here. But it never hurts to hear it !

NATASHA

The sounds of people laughing fill the air as Mamma’s family comes to our back yard. It’s where we get together almost every evening and feast on the food she and her daughters have prepared for us all to enjoy while listening to old tales and funny stories .

I never get tired of hearing the things these people come up with. As I make my way out to the garden to join them, I find my husband with a little girl on his knee, playing trot-little-horsy with her .

The baby in my arms is quickly grabbed up by one of Mamma’s many daughters and he’s whisked away by her as she coos at him. There is no shortage of babysitters here. And we are part of that circle as well .

I take the empty seat next to Nic and run my hand over the little girl’s plump cheek. “Hi, Mena. Are you having fun with Uncle Nicholai ?”

She nods, sending her wild dark curls every which way. I laugh as I watch the boys running after several little girls, holding fireflies in their hands and chasing them, making them shriek .

“You’ve raised some hellions there, my princess,” he tells me .

“Don’t go blaming me now. I think tormenting girls is in their DNA,” I say with a laugh .

He places Mena on the ground and pats her back, sending her on to play. “Tormenting, huh?” he says with a growl. “In our DNA , huh ?”

When he gets up, I start to laugh, nervously. “Nic, don’t you dare !”

With one quick move, I’m tossed over his broad shoulder as he runs away with me into the house. It’s very quiet inside of the huge home. Everyone is outside and I giggle as he takes the stairs two at a time .

“Nic, we can’t take off and leave our guests alone,” I say, as it’s obvious he has plans for me .

“They’re not guests. They’re family. And they won’t miss us if we disappear for an hour or so,” he says as he kicks open our bedroom door .

He tosses me on the bed and begins to pull my clothes off. “Okay, but only an hour, no longer,” I say as I hurry to push his pants down .

“No longer than two hours, I promise,” he says, then rips my panties away and yanks me to the edge of the bed. “Come here woman. I have a craving only you can satisfy .”

His eyes go dark as night as he descends upon me. Taking me to new heights as we can hear children laughing and people talking away as music plays in our backyard. The way it does nearly every night since we moved to this place we both fell in love with and call our home .

It looks like we’ve found our happy ending after all .

T he End