I SMELLED HIM before I heard him.

Even obliterated Q moved like a freaking ghost.

I’d fallen asleep in the library beside the fire. Courage and his family were curled up in the ambient warmth of the flames on the chesterfield rug, snoring lightly, while I reminded myself over and over that Q and I were fine.

For hours, I’d been ensconced with old books and the memories of the past—remembering when I’d returned to Q and taken a blood pledge to always fight him, always stand up to him, and never, ever let him break me.

For some reason, I’d let him pull away these past few days. I’d broken that vow by not fighting. I’d destroyed my side of the bargain because I’d let him win.

But not anymore.

I’d done a lot of thinking about the charity I’d seen on his desk and the reasons for his unhappiness. Seeds of ideas had sprouted into mildly terrifying but scarily exciting conclusions.

I think I know…

Q padded past the library, taking with him the fumes of whiskey. I waited as he patrolled the house, looking for me. Everyone had gone to bed even though it was only eleven p.m.

I was glad for the pretense of an empty home. We had no recovering women living under our roof tonight; the three rehabilitating girls in our current care slept in the house across the lawn with their families.

Which was good.

Because Q and I had a lot to talk about and I wasn’t entirely sure how it would end.

When he finally stalked through the premises and didn’t find me, he retraced his steps. My skin prickled as his footfalls sounded louder just before his shadow appeared in the doorway. The dog’s ears pricked; their black eyes zeroing in on the master of the household.

“There you are, esclave.”

His voice was heavy and potent, slipping through my blood like the alcohol he’d consumed. I doubted he’d eaten; I hadn’t seen him this pissed since the night the police arrived.

My body tingled, remembering what we’d done afterward. How connected we’d been. How in love I’d fallen from one night of unbridled monstrosity.

I wanted that to happen again.

I wanted him angry and rough. I wanted to be completely consumed. And I knew how to make that happen.

Placing the first edition copy of some French classic onto the side table by the wingback, I stood on firm legs. I’d slipped into a pastel pink negligee. My hair was freshly washed with air-dried curls, and my body hid behind the clinging satin, hinting at my curves. My hands curled for war, but my nipples betrayed me, pinpricking like diamonds against the lingerie, very visible and aching for his teeth.

I’d dressed accordingly for the sexual fight we would no doubt commit.

His eyes drifted to my chest, his throat working as he swallowed.

Q had only grown more attractive as he aged.

His sharp widow peak and soft green eyes were severe and pristine. His black suit and aubergine tie crisp and full of dominant authority. From his clipped fingernails to his polished, sharp teeth, Q was a predator through and through.

But I wasn’t his prey.

I was his equal. Hunting by his side, massacring our enemies, not afraid to enter a fight with him snarling beside me. But like any good partner, I submitted to him and only him. I sheathed my claws when he came for me. I bit but only gently. I let my mate mount me and fuck me because our power lay in the dynamics of being equals and accepting our place in life.

Our place together.

Q had forgotten his place.

I would help remind him of it.

Ignoring the dogs, I strode to meet him in the middle of the carpet. I tilted my head. His glassy eyes met mine, struggling to focus after drinking copious amounts of whiskey. “Hello, maître.”

“Bonsoir.” Good evening.

His French never failed to lash around me with the softest threads and harshest demands. I shuddered with anticipation and desire. I wanted to give in to him so desperately, but I also wanted to fight.

We needed to fight. To air whatever it was that he hurt with.

I wouldn’t drag this out. We both knew we’d been stalemate. We hadn’t moved past the conversation we were about to have when Frederick had interrupted us.

As if no time had passed, I said, “I saw those papers on your desk. I know the ones you mean.”

Q stood ramrod straight. “We’re doing this now?”

“Do you have a better idea?”

A cloak of despondency settled over him. “Fine.” His fingers moved stealthy, undoing his tailored jacket and slipping it down his arms. Standing with only the slightest wobble, he undid his cufflinks, threw them to the floor, and rolled up his shirt cuffs. His tie was undone and tossed over the arm of the wingback while the first few buttons of his black shirt were undone to reveal a tease of the tattoo on his chest.

I didn’t know if he was preparing to talk or attack me.

My breathing turned feathery. Did he have to do that? In just a few motions, he’d made this layered with sex.

“Where do you want to start, Q?”

He chuckled with black undertones, “Oh, I can think of a few places.” He stalked me.

I parried back. If I let him touch me, it would be all over. The air crackled with pent-up lust. My voice wobbled. “Why did you get so upset? Why won’t you talk to me?”

“First, tell me what you saw.”

“I already told you.”

“No, you didn’t.” He shook his head, his eyes flashing. “Along with the animal charities, what else have I donated heavily to?”

My heart chased my lungs around. This was it. I didn’t look away. “Orphanages.”

His posture stiffened. “And—”

“And supporting unwanted babies with medical issues.”

He continued to corral me around the room. “Any idea why I would suddenly have the urge to help in that way after a lifetime of no interest?”

I shrugged, but I couldn’t hide the knowledge from blaring on my face.

He kept chasing me, backing me into the same desk that he’d swiped everything off and made me vow to love him no matter what. The polished wood stopped my retreat. He had me trapped. “Q…”

Deleting the space between us, he bared his teeth. “Yes, Tess?”

“I don’t know…”

“Yes, you do.”

“I need you to say it—”

He chuckled angrily. “No, you don’t. According to Frederick, you know more than you’ve let on.”

I do. Or at least, I think I do. But why won’t he admit it?

Feigning ignorance, I tried again. “Tell me...”

“Why should I?”

“Because I want the truth.”

He snarled. “The truth?”

My spine tensed. “Yes.”

Q jerked hands through his hair. “Okay…the truth.” Taking a shaking breath, he growled, “I want something I didn’t think I’d ever want.”

“You want to adopt?”

His glare pinned me into a panting statue. “Try again, esclave.”

Oh, my God.

I was right.

I’d wondered if this would ever happen. If Q would change his mind about having a family. He said he didn’t want one. How could he switch so quickly?

“You want a child?”

He didn’t reply, but his eyes glowed a deeper, truer green full of confession and guilt.

Why did he feel guilty? There was nothing to be guilty about. People changed their minds all the time.

My hastily formed conclusions from earlier turned from seedlings into thick roots threading through my heart.

A family…

“Is that true?”

His eyes dove into mine. “As much as I wish it wasn’t, yes, it’s true.”

“You’re helping with charities because your mind has turned to babies.”

A black cloud descended over him. “And what does that tell you, Tess?”

“You want a baby?”

His face hardened. “With?”

“With me?” My fingers fluttered over my chest. I wobbled at the thought of getting everything I’d ever dreamed of. I’d accepted his condition about not having children because I loved him enough to be complete without it. But hearing him admit to a change of heart…

I couldn’t explain the fizzing giddy sensation making its way through my blood.

I wanted to touch him, hug him…finally tell him my opinions about such a revelation. Imagine sharing our wonderful life with a child of our own…wow. Even though I’d known Q’s stance on starting a family, it didn’t mean I hadn’t tested his conviction over a year ago.

Dinner one night, I’d brought it up—very suave with no pressure—and Q hadn’t been interested in the slightest. I’d remained on my contraception injections and didn’t mention it again.

He’d been through a lot with his family, and I hadn’t had the best experience, either. If he didn’t want children, then I wouldn’t pressure him. I hadn’t brought it up again, which made this all the more precious because he’d come to this realisation on his own with no prompting or hinting from me.

He hadn’t replied.

I repeated my breathless question. “You’re saying you want a baby with me?”

Trembling, Q placed his hands on either side of me, hemming me against the desk. His eyes shot black, dropping to my lips as the heart-stopping words spilled from his lips. “More than fucking anything.”

“But…I don’t understand.”

“What’s there to understand? I’ve had a change of heart. I never wanted kids, and now…now, I want it more than fucking anything because I love you. I want to multiply you. I want you pregnant with my, our child.”

Tears glossed my eyes. “But when we talked about it before you said—”

“I didn’t want this then.”

“So…what’s changed?”

His gaze devoured me.  “Me, you. Us. Everything. Can’t I change my mind about such things?”

I wanted to look away but couldn’t. My skin tingled with intensity. “But I’m on birth control. The injection doesn’t fade for another few months.”

Q reared back, yet another secret inscribed on his face. “Tess—”

For a moment, anger heated me. What had he done? But then fear filled me instead. Pushing off from the desk, I followed him. “What is it? What do you know that I don’t?”

Was he infertile? Did he have a vasectomy before we met?

What?

Dropping his gaze, he muttered, “You’ve been off contraception for two months.”

I stopped breathing. “What?”

“The last appointment you had…” He stomped away, his voice full of emotion. “I know I shouldn’t have done it. But I wanted to see. I needed to see. If I got you pregnant, I would’ve been free to love you the way I have. I would’ve been fucking ecstatic.”

I wrapped my arms around myself suddenly icy cold. “You had the doctor give me a placebo? Q…why would you do such a thing? What if I’d changed my mind and no longer wanted children? What if I was on contraception because I agreed with you about keeping our family just the two of us?”

Q froze. “You have every fucking right to be angry at me.”

“Angry? I’m livid!” My hands balled. “You did that behind my back! For months, you’ve been feeling this way and only now you tell me? What would you have done if I had fallen pregnant, huh? Would you have told me that you deliberately knocked me up or lie about it being an accident? Would you have made me feel terrible for trapping you into something you didn’t want believing the injection failed?”

I couldn’t look at him.

Tearing past, I charged for the door. I needed some space, to get my head on so I didn’t say something I regretted.

But he didn’t let me.

His hand lashed out, fingers locking around my wrist. “You’re not going anywhere, esclave. You’re the one who wanted to talk.”

“Talk, yes. But not discover you’ve been lying to me for weeks!”

“I’m sorry for—”

“For not sharing this with me? Don’t you think this should’ve been discussed when you first started feeling this way? What on earth were you thinking, Q? How dare you tamper with my medical appointment!”

Served me right for using the doctor Q vetted and approved. Client confidentiality, my ass. Ugh, I felt so betrayed.

Q didn’t let me go, waiting for my temper to blow itself out. However, my mind filled with other complications. Worse complications. I stiffened as realisation kicked into me.

Q understood where my thoughts had gone. His shoulders slouched. “Now, do you get it?”

No, I didn’t get it. But I had a lot more questions trying to understand.

I hugged myself. “If what you said is true, and I’ve been off contraception for two months…why haven’t I become pregnant?”

His eyes glowed with agony, moving away from me.

It was my turn to chase him. “We’ve had a lot of sex since then, Q, with no protection. If it were going to happen, it would’ve happened by now.”

At least…I think?

How long did it take the chemical hormones to leave my system? Was my cycle capable of conception or screwed after using contraception for so long? And if it wasn’t, what did that mean? Was it just a time thing or was it something a lot, lot worse.

My heart squeezed as Q shook his head, his face tight and hard. I’d gone straight to the crux of his pain. The issue he’d been dealing with alone without talking to me.

He stormed away, pinching the bridge of his nose. “That’s what’s been fucking with my head.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean…what if our lifestyle—the way we have sex—means you can’t get pregnant? What if when I hurt you, your body refuses my cum because it’s nature’s way of preventing life from entering a world that’s so violent.”

“What? That’s insane.” I couldn’t stop rolling my eyes. “That’s the most stupidest—”

Slamming to a stop, he grabbed me. “It’s not stupid. It’s fucking karma.” His fingers dug into my arms far tighter than required. “I’ve killed so many. I’ve hurt others. Been a fucking animal.” He sneered at his hold. “See, I can’t even hold you without wanting to hurt you. What sort of home is that for a kid to be born into? It’s my fault you can’t get pregnant. I’m the one who whips you and does god-awful shit to you. This is my punishment for loving you so goddamn much but unable to give you everything you want because I take so much from you. I’m being punished because of the fucked-up part of me I can’t control.”

I buckled beneath his pain even as a disbelieving laugh fell from my lips. “Oh, my God. You’ve lost it. You’re afraid of what you’ll do to your children because of what we do together? I’ll tell you what you’d do. You’d dote upon them, Q. You’d be the best, protective father who only had their well-being in mind. You’re one of the most selflessly kind people I know—”

“You don’t know the urges I fight every day, Tess.”

“No, and you don’t know mine. If you did, there is no way you could believe such filth.”

We breathed hard, glowering at each other. I wanted to hit him; to try and strike some sense into that thick skull. Instead, I did my best to keep my temper in check.

Inhaling deeply, I whispered, “You have to stop torturing yourself. All of that is ludicrous. You’re insane to believe that.”

“Don’t deny that I’m not a good person, Tess. The things I’ve done—”

I bared my teeth. “Whatever badness lives inside you, Q, is far outweighed by the good. And if you’re blaming yourself based on our choice to add pain to our pleasure, stop that right now. I ask for that. I live for that. I love you because of that.”

He shook his head. “That wasn’t what I meant, and you know it.”

I hated to see him so tortured. “If you’re saying I want a child… then yes, I do. I love the thought of a son who looks like you. But I also don’t cry myself to sleep at night thinking I’ll never be complete without one. I am complete. You make me complete.” My hand landed on his chest, his wild heartbeats drumming in my fingertips. “Don’t destroy yourself with those thoughts. What we have together—the violent love we share—it isn’t just you who indulges. I’m a full participant. Besides, that isn’t the reason why we aren’t getting pregnant—”

“Oh? Why else would it fucking be? Am I sterile then? Am I the one to blame for that, too?”

“No!” My heart matched his as I cupped his cheek. “You’re never to blame. Never, do you hear me? You said it yourself, it’s only been two months. That’s nothing in the scheme of things. We’ll get tested…find out why and go from there.”

He lied to me for two months. He’d been living with these nonsensical thoughts, falling deeper and deeper into their falsehoods.

I wish he’d talked to me sooner. Perhaps then he wouldn’t be such a foolish man believing in preposterous notions that he was the one to blame because of his desires.

How anyone could think that was beyond me. But this was Q. He’d sent me back to Brax because of the same reason. The reason hidden beneath his self-hatred, doubts, and guilt.

That he’ll never be pure enough to deserve me, our love…a family.

“Tests?” He reared back. “No.”

The thought of doctors prodding and invasive examinations wasn’t something I was keen to do, but if he wanted a family as much as he said he did, then that was what had to happen.

Something switched in him, shedding the fight and becoming sharp with conviction. His face contorted, his drunken haze granting fake lucidity. “I have a better idea.”

“Oh?”

“All our years together, we’ve given into the inner-most urges. When we fuck, it’s intense and almost life threatening with how deep we go. Your body is too focused on staying alive to let the natural progression of whatever it is that makes you pregnant.”  He grabbed me by the back of the nape. “I want to try something different. I want to make love to you, Tess.”

What is he talking about?

“You do. Every time we’re together.” Doesn’t he know that love drenches his every touch? “You do make love to me, Q.”

He chuckled. “No, I make war with you. I fuck you. I adore you. I ruin you. For too long I’ve been weak, thinking I couldn’t change who I was. I need to pay a toll or find redemption…something to make me a better person.”

Ugh, I can’t get through to him like this.

I was stubborn. But Q was a concrete wall. If he believed these daft ideas, it would take days, possibly weeks to refute them and change his mind. However, it was possible. I’d done it before when I returned to him. I would do it again.

My heart galloped around my ribcage. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. None of that makes sense. You’re being absurd.”

“Absurd?” His face blackened. “You think I’m absurd when I share my innermost fears? That it’s okay to roll your eyes and laugh at me? Fuck, Tess. I can’t rationalize the way I feel. I know how moronic it sounds. But I need to do this. I have to try. Otherwise, I’ll hate myself more than I already do.”

I sucked in a breath. “You don’t mean that.”

“Je déteste ne pas être un homme meilleur. Oui.” I hate that I’m not a better man. Yes.

“Take that back, Q.”

He sighed heavily, reaching out to touch me. “Tess, please, don’t judge. You’ve let me do all manner of shit to you. The one time I ask to worship you and you fight me.” His head bowed. “Please don’t fucking fight me.”

I didn’t know how to take this. What is he saying? How had he twisted himself into so many unfathomable knots?

Courage whined from his place on the rug, interrupting our heavy argument. Taking a deep breath, I truly studied Q. His face was drawn with dark angles. His eyes haunted and lost. If he fully believed in such silly things, who was I to belittle them? The only way to prove he was wrong. To remind him he was a wonderful, selfless man was to give in.

For just a little while.

Moving closer to him, I murmured. “If you need to do whatever it is you’re saying, I won’t say no. However, I don’t believe it has anything to do with—”

“This is what has to happen, esclave. Do I need to tie you down to make it come true?”

My lips curled. “That sounds more like the man I married.”

He refused to smile in return, his eyes crackling with lust. “I’m going to worship you. I’m not going to hurt you or drag you into pain. But not tonight.”

My insides turned to liquid at the thought of connection and sex. I wanted him. Especially now he’d added an entirely new element to our marriage. “Why not tonight?” I waved at the empty house, encompassing the canine witnesses by the fire. “We have the space to ourselves.” Minus a few doggy voyeurs.

Slipping into the monstrous master I knew, he growled, “Because right now, I have a much better idea. If I’m going to do this. If I’m going to shackle the beast inside and treat you the way you’ve always meant to be treated, then I need one more night. I need to fuck you, Tess. I need it raw with no limits. Let me take that from you and I’ll give you everything else I can in return.”

I shivered. “You don’t have to convince me. I want what you do. We don’t have to stop—”

His hand smashed over my lips. “Yes, we do. I’m being punished for the way I treat you. It’s only right. What sort of fucking parent would I be if our baby was born to a mother with bruises? What sort of father would I be if I dreamed of making you bleed? I have to get rid of that part of me. It’s not right. It’s not human. And I need to be human to deserve you. To deserve a child with you.”

His voice plaited with rage and despair.

There was no talking him out of such crazy rationale. There was no right and wrong. No law or rules that said we couldn’t indulge in what we wanted and still have a family. Q was the most protective man; he would be the best father imaginable. What we did together behind closed doors was no one else’s business, including any children we might have.

To imagine him taking that away from me—forbidding any more violent lust was blasphemous.

If he weren’t already drunk, I would’ve made him so. If he went through with this idiotic idea, I wanted him to lose all control tonight. I wanted to be completely and utterly at his mercy with no thoughts between us.

Nothing but touch and trembles.

Pressing on my breastbone, Q walked me backward to the desk. Never removing his fingers, he shoved me hard, gritting his teeth as I splayed over the desk. Behind me sat an untouched plate of strawberry jam and fresh scones that a maid had brought in for dessert.

I hadn’t touched it.

Q noticed the edible confectionary instantly. “Ever heard the expression ‘you shouldn’t play with your food?’” His hand shot over my head, his fingers digging into the red sugar preserve. Never breaking eye contact, he brought the sweetness to my cheek.

Smearing it on my overheated skin, he smiled. “We’re about to break that rule.”

Uncertainty and excitement bubbled in my blood. I’d won this fight, and Q had finally talked to me. But I hadn’t won at all because if he went through with this, then he would take away a part of him that I was madly in love with.

Already, I mourned our violent affair, and he hadn’t even muzzled himself yet.

Q hovered above me, his body wound tight and bristling with lust. His pale eyes spoke of nothing but the urge to dominate and fuck.

With infinitesimal slowness, he inserted the sticky strawberry jam on his finger into my mouth. His wedding ring glinted in the low light, hinting at the inked tattoo beneath the gold.

I moaned as his finger hooked over my tongue, yanking my mouth open before crashing his lips over mine and kissing me deep and wet and true.

Breaking our connection, his tongue licked my cheek, taking the rest of the jam before kissing me again with sugary seduction.

I shuddered against him, life fading around us, as he became my sun and gravity.

My throat ached as his fingers dropped to strangle me. His large hand bordered delicate and crushing as the tiny urge to scratch and fight waged with submitting and begging for more.

Q fought himself on a minutely basis. For him to finally admit he wanted a family proved he was capable of so much more than he believed.

A child would weaken and empower him. A son would keep him fighting and possessive for years. And a daughter…a daughter might just ruin him with his desire to keep her safe.

But he was willing to drive himself mad because the urge inside overpowered his reason. It made me love him all the more. Our relationship had started on a quicksand foundation, slowly growing firmer as we grew to trust each other and accept what we needed. Now that foundation was stone and granite. He could have me like this and be a good father.

I just had to show him that. Just like I’d taught him so many things in our time together.

“Come.” Q let my throat go, breaking the kiss and pulling me from the desk.

I swallowed around the slight bruising of my larynx, blinking back swirling need. “Where are we—”

“No questions.” His face darkened as he escorted me from the library.

With our hands interlocked, he guided me down the corridor to the indoor swimming pool.

We used this place often. I loved to exercise in the mornings and indulge in a few laps before breakfast. Q preferred to work out at night, removing the stress of the day and any other problems in his mind before obliterating the rest of his concerns by making love to me. 

He doesn’t believe what we do is making love.

Silly, silly man.

It was. Through and through.

I touched my bruised lips, tasting strawberry jam as Q locked the door, leaving us in echoey silence with the tang of salt in the air. The pool wasn’t chlorinated but kept clean and filtered using liquid as salty as the sea.

His eyes flashed with shame before being swallowed by blazing darkness. “Tonight, there are no rules, esclave. As-tu un problème avec ça?” Do you have a problem with that?

My body loosened, melted, giving into his wishes before he’d even begun. Q’s ferocity was gasoline to the already curling fire turning my blood into dust. “No.”

“Good.”

Removing the distance between us, Q placed both hands on my cheeks. His fingers would’ve been loving and tender, but they bit with silent need. “I’m going to fuck you, wife.”

I sucked in a hopeless breath as Q bowed his head and kissed me.

His tongue lashed out with demand, forcing me to follow his lead. I tensed for pain, for a bite or claw, but he kept himself sweet. The kiss granted a false sense of security and romance as his hands left my face, dancing over my breasts.

Arching my back, I pressed my nipples into his touch, moaning for more.

His lips tightened in a feral smile beneath mine as he ignored my request and moved his fingers to my shoulders.

He hovered there.

Kissing me.

Loving me.

I didn’t move.

Knowing this wasn’t the end but merely the beginning, I held my ground as Q looped his touch beneath the spaghetti straps of my negligee. With a harsh breath, he tore at the material.

I cried out in pain as the satin cut into my shoulder blades, fighting his desire to destroy it.

The nightgown put up a fight, but it was useless.

Q wanted me naked.

He wanted to butcher my outer shell and strip me nude because he couldn’t hurt my flesh in the same way. This was his only outlet, and I had no problem replacing yet another negligee with new.

My stomach flipped as his lips landed on my brand, his hand fisting my hair to tilt my head the way he needed. He licked me, keeping his teeth sheathed as my nightgown slipped to the damp floor.

The air inside the pool dripped with humidity. The carving of jungle and parrots decorating the walls were the only witnesses as I stood naked and wanting.

Our breaths were lost in the liquid music of a waterfall spilling into the pool, leaving the water rippling and broken.

Taking my hand, Q paced toward the control panel where light switches and temperature gauges rested. Selecting only one form of illumination, I smiled as the LED lights in the pool sprang bright. Hidden at the bottom they filtered through the water, bouncing of crimson mosaic and turning the salty depths a blood, blood red.

Q smiled as he guided me toward the shallows. “Get in.”

Not giving me a choice, he pushed.

I stepped off the edge and held my breath as the warm water lapped over my head. Pushing off from the bottom, I broke the surface and wiped away droplets to watch Q undress.

Not that Q undressed.

He tore like a beast shedding its winter coat.

He was as violent with his own clothes as he was with mine. Ripping his shirt, not caring about buttons, and tearing at his fly to kick away expensive shoes and tailored suits. The minute he was naked, he stood over me proud and glorious.

Taking his cock in his hand, he stroked the steel-hard length. “Take a good look, Tess. Because soon this will be so far inside you, you’ll be screaming for mercy.”

Water cascaded off my arm as I reached for him. “Can I touch you?”

“Tu peux me sucer si tu le souhaites.” You can suck if you wish.

I licked my lips. “I do wish.” Shivering, I couldn’t look away from him. I stared at both my husband and the monster I would never be able to tame. To think Q would try to shackle this part of himself and win? It was inconceivable. He was wild at heart. It would break him to be normal.

“You have to come closer, maître.” My eyes dropped to his lips. They were wet from his tongue, making my mouth water at the thought of kissing him again.

Never looking away, Q bent his knees until he crashed on the edge of the pool. His fingers grew white as he fisted his cock. “I’ll only ever accept instruction from you, my sweet wife.” His free hand dropped to my nipple, tugging it hard. “You have me on my knees. What do you intend to do with me?”

My breathing turned shallow as I pressed my body against the side of the pool. My mouth was so close to his erection—a willing vessel ready to taste.

But I paused.

Fluttering my eyelashes, I whispered, “My intention, dear master, is to suck your cock until you snap. I want to taste the whiskey you’ve been drinking, I want to bite you so you rage, and then, when you’ve had enough of my mouth, I want you to fuck me like you were born to do.”

His jaw clenched; his five o’ clock shadow darker in this gloomy water world. Letting go of his cock, he grabbed my head, bringing me toward him. “When you talk like that, how am I supposed to say no?” His teeth flashed as his touch turned brutal, inserting his hot erection past my lips. “Suck me like a good little esclave.”

My tongue swiped around his crown. We groaned in unison.

Once upon a time, I’d taken it upon myself to break Q. Believing, that until he gave in to me and trusted my love for him, he’d never be free. This reminded me so much of that. He wanted something more from me. Something I was achingly ready to give. But he was afraid.

And Q afraid was not a good thing. He would be volatile, mercurial, and impossible to predict.

Slackening my jaw, I inserted his length past my gag reflex.

Q half-grunted, half-growled as I cupped his balls and squeezed. His body swayed forward, teetering on the edge of the pool while I stood waist deep in warm water and sucked him.

I knew how he liked it. I knew what turned him on.

I hummed low in my throat.

The vibration of my voice rippled over his erection, activating the muscles in his lower belly. Q breathed hard, sending his sparrow tattoo fluttering like crazy.

He groaned as he fisted himself, working deeper into my mouth. “Fuck, I want to climb inside you.”

I pulled away for a second. “Get into the pool and do it. Please, God, do it.”

“So fucking demanding tonight.” He throttled his length. “I don’t remember agreeing to obey you.”

“You obey me because I am your wife.”

His face arranged into a roguish smile. “And my wife needs to remember her place.”

Pointing at his glistening cock, a small droplet of pre-cum hovered on the tip. “You haven’t finished with your first task.” His balls sat high and tight, straining with the urge to come.

Reaching for my hair again, he jerked my face onto his erection. “Use your pretty mouth for more important things, esclave.” With powerful hands, he gripped my nape, locking me into the perfect position to be used.

I shivered.

Our eyes burned holes in each other, but we didn’t say a word.

I inched higher, opening my mouth and latching my fingers around him.

His head fell back, as I slipped him onto my tongue. “Goddammit, Tess.”

I opened wide and sucked Q deep, deep, deep. He threaded his fingers tighter into my hair, holding me prisoner as my tongue lapped and licked.

He rocked into me, pressing down on my head. “Take it. Fuck.”

My pussy clenched. I saw stars with how much I wanted him inside me. My teeth teased his velvety skin, hinting at my need to consume him.

His cock rippled as I sucked harder. 

He shuddered as I sank back down on him, waiting for him to snap, sliding my hand once again between his legs and caressing his balls.

He twitched as his muscular thighs quivered.

I flexed my fingers, ignoring everything but getting Q to lose control.

“Fuck, Tess.” Q trembled. “I’m so damn close.”

My mouth leaked saliva, unable to do anything but accept Q’s thrusts. Curses rained in the muggy humidity as his body fought my possession and battled to release.

His body jerked as I sucked particularly hard, determined to drive him to the brink. However, his fingers yanked my head up with danger in his gaze.

I held eye contact as his face contorted with need. “Fuck, you’re too good, too pure, too beautiful.” His teeth shone in the darkness. “Fucking your mouth, your body…every part of you gets me so fucking hard.”

His dirty eloquence puddled into the pool, raising goosebumps on my arms as he jerked me onto his cock. I became more than his wife and pleasure slave. I became his fantasy as he used me.

Throwing his head back, the first taste of salty musk coated my tongue. Instantly, Q shoved me away. I fell backward, disappearing under the water for a moment.

When I stood, he’d launched himself into the pool and shoved me against the mosaic wall. His teeth clamped onto my collarbone as he thrust his cock against my slippery lower belly. “What were you trying to do, esclave? Make me come in your mouth rather than your cunt? Do you not want me to get you pregnant?”

I never thought I’d hear Q say such things.

It made me freaking ecstatic.

I panted as he turned me around, squashing me between his rock-stone body and the wall. Water sloshed everywhere as my hands scrambled at the side, concrete biting into my cheek. “No, I do.”

Tugging away my soaking wet curls, he bit the back of my neck like a wolf. “Tell me how much you want it.”

“I want it. I want you inside me.”

“And?”

“I want you to get me pregnant.”

“Why?” Grabbing my jaw, he forced me to kiss him. Angling my neck so he could plunder my mouth from behind. The kiss lasted long enough to make me lightheaded and wobbly. If he weren’t holding me so tight, I would’ve floated away like a shipwreck. “Because I want your child.”

He jolted, deepening the kiss until I almost gagged. My heart sunburst in my chest as our bodies slicked against each other with war but our mouths dedicated themselves to utmost pleasure.

Breaking away, Q grunted, “You have no idea what that does to me.” Running his cock up and down the crack of my ass, he gripped my hip with his free hand. “Feel how hard I am for you, Tess? Feel how much I need to fuck you?”

I nodded, pressing my forehead on the edge of the pool. “Yes.”

Words to demand that he do exactly that hovered on my tongue. But I’d learned the hard way. I couldn’t control Q’s pace. I merely had to give in, let go, and grant total power to him.

I never found that a hardship. More like a sensual gift only he could bestow. I fought so hard to be where I was. I’d done things I wasn’t proud of and continued to fight life on everyday concerns. But when I was with Q…none of that mattered. He took every worry and consumed me.

He was more than a master. He was a magician.

Q removed his touch and swam off down the pool. His precise strokes sliced through the water like a blade, his sleek naked form so damn erotic in the welcoming darkness.

I didn’t breathe as he reached the other end and effortlessly hauled himself out. Dripping wet and still hard, he stalked toward the changing room where he disappeared for a few seconds before coming out with two things hidden in his hands.

With a sinful smile, he dove back into the water and powered toward me.

I blinked as he swam around me, breaking the surface only once his arm locked around my waist and his hot mouth licked my spine.

Before I could ask what he’d gone to claim, he wrenched my arms behind my back and secured them tightly.

My senses zeroed in on where he touched me, trying to guess what he’d used as a restraint. I have no idea. My voice rippled around the pool room. “What are you using?”

Spinning me to face him, his eyes captured mine. “The elastic band you aqua train with.”

I squirmed against the tight binding. The thick rubber that acted as a resistance while performing water yoga kept me pinioned. There was no way I could get free.

My heart leapt into my throat. I didn’t mind being bound—I loved it. But never in a pool where drowning was entirely too easy, especially in this large space where the bottom shelved steeply into a deep, threatening tide.

“Don’t struggle. You know I’ll keep you safe.” Q’s murmur danced down my back.

My panic receded as trust billowed fast and true.

Q was born into darkness, but he’d never baptized me in his blackest desires. And because of that, I could implicitly say he spoke the truth. No matter what he did to me, he would never truly harm me.

Q paused, his tattooed chest soaking. His feathered sparrows fluffing off droplets almost alive on his skin. “I told you once never to fall for me. That I didn’t want the curse of breaking your heart while I broke so many other pieces of you.” His hands landed on my breasts, cupping them reverently. “Yet you fought me, just like you said you would. You fell for me, just like you promised you would. And now, you’re willing to give me what I need even after I tricked you and lied.”

I swayed as I fell even deeper for this complex husband of mine. Q was all my fantasies in one glorious lifetime. The fact he finally wanted to share me with his child spoke volumes about his capacity to love.

“I’m so glad you ignored me, esclave.” His fingertips branded my nipples with pain. “So fucking happy you married me.” Pushing me backward, he smiled harshly as my spine met the pool wall. His chest strained as he sucked in a heavy breath. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

My heart hammered in my ears as he kissed me.

His tongue laced with mine, and I sank into the sweet embrace, knowing it would be the last I received tonight. The air crackled with an impending storm. Q’s control frayed every second, his eyes drenching in determination and the salacious need to hurt.

Breaking the kiss, he opened his hand, revealing the other item he’d retrieved.

A tiny pair of silver scissors from the toiletries in the changing room. I stiffened but didn’t flinch. This was Q’s signature. It wouldn’t be sex with him if he didn’t draw a little of my blood.

Gently, he placed the sharp twin blades against my breast just above my nipple. “If I get you pregnant, these won’t belong just to me anymore.” He pressed down, never breaking eye contact. My skin gave way, permitting a small puncture and blood to well. “Do you think that’s fair, esclave?”

I moaned as he ducked his head and sucked the bright red bead. His tongue swirled around my nipple, his teeth biting with ruthless sharpness.

Blood raced faster in my veins, either rushing toward him or running away. I could never tell when he put me in this mindset.

“No, they’ll always be yours.”

“Always?”

“Always, maître.”

Towering over me, water decorated his face as his hand disappeared beneath the surface to my lower belly. I stopped breathing as the scissors teased my delicate flesh.

“I cut you once here. Do you remember?”

I nodded. “Yes. You licked me clean and then permitted me to do the same to you.”

His eyes blackened. “And you liked it? Tasting me? Claiming me?”

My moan was answer enough as he cut me shallow and quick.

We both looked below the surface, fascinated by the slow curl of pink staining from me, vanishing almost instantly into the stinging salt.

“You bleed for me so willingly, Tess.” His lips latched around my ear. “Will you scream for me, too?”

My eyes shot wide as his body crushed me against the wall. My arms bellowed as my bound hands crashed against the tiles. Q ripped my legs from the pool bottom holding my weight as he wrapped my thighs around his hips.

His hand fumbled between us as he angled his cock and shoved deep inside me.

He hadn’t touched me there yet. It made the invasion all that more intense.

His face contorted with furious etches. “I’m tired of lying. I’m tired of fighting how much I want this. I’m tired of pretending I don’t need this from you.” His mouth claimed mine, kissing me hungrily as our bodies connected with no barriers. “I’m giving up. I’m going to do whatever it takes. I’m going to fuck you, love you, win you. And when you’re so fucking tired of me taking you, I’m going to do it all over again. You’re going to give me what I want. Aren’t you, wife?”

His thick cock stole all coherency.

I nodded.

That was all I was capable of. My mouth stretched wide, focusing on the slip and slide of him. The pinch and pain as he fucked me hard. And the glorious pleasure he invoked.

I’d never felt more alive than when we came together. Sex wasn’t just for us. It was about making something from us. Combining our souls to create another.

It added a terrifying dimension to our sexual fight.

“Yes,” I whispered.

Q gritted his teeth, visibly shuddering. He kissed me again. Hard. Fast. Lethal. His hands landed on the edge of the pool, blocking me in the cage of his body while his hips thrust into mine.

I couldn’t move. My hands remained locked together, and my neck protested as his kiss turned vicious. He took and gave and took some more. Every twist of his tongue demanded I do what I promised and find a way to become pregnant for him.

Spearing my tongue with his, we battled until we were heaving and insane. Nothing existed but our kiss and being inside each other. The stinging cuts on my breast and stomach only anchored me more to him, and my pussy fired with the need to release, building and building with a demand I couldn’t ignore.

“Q…please…I’m going to—”

Instantly, he stopped. Pulling out of me, he ended both the kiss and our connection.

No!

My eyes shot wide with frustration. “Why—why did you stop?”

“Because I don’t want you coming without doing something.”

Uh-oh.

“Doing what?”

His grin was pure animal. “This.”

Taking a deep breath, he vanished beneath the water.

I gasped as his hands pinned my hips against the side of the pool. I teetered with imbalance, unable to hold onto anything with my wrists tied.

What the hell is he doing?

His reply came a second later in the form of teeth.

The wet room ricocheted with my breathless scream as Q’s tongue replaced the silk of seawater with sensual saliva. I turned legless and inhuman as he shot his tongue inside me, fucking me just as roughly as he did before.

His fingers replaced his tongue, three stretching me, heralding my begging orgasm.

I gave into him. I didn’t have a choice.

My head lolled as his fingers drove in and out and his mouth suckled on my clit. I didn’t know how long he could hold his breath, but my shoulders ached and the mental tally it took to stand up while all I wanted to do was melt battled with the spooling sensation in my womb.

And then pain.

My release switched from building to detonating as Q’s teeth sank hard and unforgiving into my clit.

He bit me!

My vision blurred on the dark shadow of him beneath the water between my legs. My thighs fought to come together as the most shattering orgasm ripped through me.

His fingers worked me in time, and the softest trickle of blood once again plaited with the pool.

The first, second, third band of my orgasm wrenched me dry, but Q didn’t stop tormenting me. He licked and bit until he wrung every shudder from me.

Only then did he push off the bottom and join me on the surface.

He smiled, water rushing off his dark hair and over his sinfully handsome features. “Did you enjoy your release, esclave?” His teeth flashed with the barest hint of my blood.

My cheeks blushed and my nipples tingled, calling for the same rough treatment. For Q to say I permitted him to hurt me only because he wanted it was absolute filth. I got off on him biting me. I got off on being hurt. It killed me to think of him taking that away from me.

Please, don’t ever change.

“Don’t ever stop, Q.”

He swallowed hard, staring unrepentant. “Don’t talk about that now.”

My thoughts raced. Even though Q had evolved in our years together, he still needed the primal depth of pain and scars. What would it do to him if he prevented that desire?

My legs trembled with the awful thought of growing apart. He said I was enough. But now he wanted more. What if that more was what broke us?

Q didn’t give my worry time to consume me. Grabbing my nape, he yanked me forward to kiss. The faint taste of copper tainted our embrace as he once again hoisted my legs around his waist and slid deep inside me. My back connected with the wall as oxygen fled my lungs.

He never broke the kiss, but I kept my eyes wide open. Focusing on his sculptured cheekbones and how achingly desperate his gaze appeared. We never looked away as his lips worked mine, soft but demanding. His hips rocked with perfect discipline. I moaned as he pressed his muscular body harder against me. The pool heated as our naked skin flushed hotter and hotter.

He withdrew, his cock only an inch inside me.

We stayed like that for a second. Just living in a perfect heartbeat.

Then violence reentered our lovemaking, and my spine arched as he plunged inside me.

Deep.

Hard.

Excruciatingly blissful.

The way he took me held no remnants of our argument or uncertainty. There was no fear or questions. Only the knowledge we belonged to each other forever.

Every time he thrust, I pushed back to meet him. Water splashed all around us, licking up the sides of the pool and echoing in the space. My lungs strained as Q grunted and rutted, taking me deep and thorough.

My hands ached to touch him. To dig my fingernails into his ass and scratch long bloody trails down his spine. I wanted to make him bleed. I wanted to love and adore him, autograph and implore him.

My pussy swelled for another release, heating and begging as a swirling orgasm started in my heart, working its way through my nerve endings.

“Take me, Tess. Every last inch of me.” Q bit my ear, losing finesse as he chased what we both needed. His hands roamed every inch—squeezing my thighs, my hips, my breasts. When he rolled my nipples, the percolation inside turned into a nucleus inside my core, just waiting for the final spark to unleash.

My heart rate ratcheted as I fought for pleasure.

“Christ, you look stunning like this. Wet and panting. Bare and begging.”

My legs wrapped tighter around his waist as he increased his speed. His hand dove between us, rubbing my tender, bitten clit. “I want to come, esclave. I want to fucking come so bad inside you.”

I flinched as intensity became my enemy.

Discomfort flared in my shoulders as my back arched for more.

Words were forgotten as Q lost himself in me. I willingly threw away any decorum or rules and chased him into the darkness.

He pinched my pussy, sending me up the final rungs of my release.

“Fuck. Fuck, yes.” His lips pulled back as he jerked into me with short, savage thrusts. His body went taut as he stopped fighting and let go.

The splash of his pleasure inside was the last element I needed to come a second time.

I combusted.

The orgasm thundered into being, webbing on the knife edge of pain, then crescendoing in a shower of sparks. My entire body contracted as I writhed on Q, milking him of everything he had left.

We didn’t speak as we stood there, twitching as the final ripples of our bliss faded. The pool slowly calmed from the tidal splashes we’d created and the little pieces of my soul collided with his, acknowledging that this was the start of something bigger than us.

Q chuckled, still rock hard inside. “If you keep clenching around me, Tess, I might have to fuck you again.”

My smile was lazy and sated. “I wouldn’t say no.”

Shadows entered his gaze as he kissed me softly. “The next time, I won’t hurt you. I won’t bind you, cut you—do anything to make you fear me.”

Before I could tell him I had no intention of letting him do such a thing, he pulled out and spun me around. With the scissors he’d nicked me with, he sliced my yoga band and freed me.

As I rubbed circulation back into my wrists, he kissed my throat. His face etched with confliction and heavy self-loathing. “I love you, Tess. And because of that, I won’t touch you that way again.”

Instead of being content and in love after a soul-deep connection, I felt stranded and alone.

Couldn’t he see I didn’t want him to pull away?

Couldn’t he see he hurt me more saying such things than he ever could with his scissors?

Not giving me a chance to argue, Q swam to the side and climbed out.

He didn’t look back.