I catch the metallic glint of a blade in my periphery, and my heart starts pounding.

Finally.

I’ve been waiting all morning for Luca to do something. I was starting to think I was wrong about him.

But I’m not.

Now, I know for sure.

Because the way he’s holding me right now, the way he restrains my whole body with his strong arms . . . I can feel his sexual frustration. The way his hands grab me. The way his fingers dig into my flesh. This is how a tormented man moves.

His chest feels hard and solid against my back. His breath falls softly on my neck, in stark contrast to the roughness of the way he’s holding me. “This is what you want, doll?”

PuppetMaster is back.

“Yes, Sir.”

“I’m going to ruin you,” he whispers, tickling my earlobe with every syllable.

“Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir.” That’s exactly what I want.

“Don’t speak too soon, doll. You have no idea what I want to do to you.”

“You can do anything you want to me, Sir.”

“Anything?” Luca presses the blade of the knife against the front of my coat. Slowly, he drags it up my coat and onto my skin—my clavicle, my neck, my throat.

“Yes, Sir. Anything.” I tilt my head up to give myself more breathing room. The blade is cold and threatening. If Luca’s hand slips, I could bleed.

In this moment, only three things exist: my breathing, the blade, and Luca. My fate is in his hands.

I let out a relieved exhale as Luca drags the blade back down onto my coat. Starting from the top, he cuts the threads keeping my buttons attached to the fabric. By the time he reaches the bottom one, my coat is gaping open, revealing my nakedness.

I cry out as Luca slides himself down the cabinet behind him, taking me down with him. As we sit on the tiled kitchen floor, Luca pulls the coat off my body and yanks me back against his collarbone as he spreads my thighs with his feet. I can feel the regular heartbeat in his chest on my head, and the pulsing of his rock-hard cock on my back. He’s surprisingly calm.

On the other hand, my heart is racing, and my body is shaking—I don’t know if it’s from the cold tiled floor, the sharp kitchen knife, or Luca’s mere presence. My skin prickles as goosebumps appear all over my body.

“Are you scared, doll?” Luca asks. His voice is deep as usual, but today it’s laced with danger and darkness.

I nod. “Yes, Sir.”

“Good,” he says cruelly. “Now, tell me. Do you really want me to ruin you?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Be careful what you wish for.” Again, he presses the cold steel blade against my skin and pulls a straight line down from the base of my throat to the juncture of my legs. “Let me get this straight. You’re scared, but you want more?”

“Yes, Sir.” I gasp as the blade grazes over my pussy lips.

“You’re shaking,” Luca says as he wraps one arm around me.

“Yes, Sir.”

“I like that. You’re such a good girl, aren’t you?” He rubs my side to soothe me, even as his other hand threatens to make me bleed. This is such a mindfuck.

“Thank you, Sir,” I say in a high-pitched voice I don’t recognize. I’m losing control of my own body.

“Good girl,” Luca whispers softly in my ear, making me shudder.

I cry out as a sharp pain bites my thigh. I look down to see a small, red line on my skin. It’s probably half the length of my pinky. A drop of blood forms where the blade is still pressing into my flesh.

“Changed your mind yet?” Luca asks. From the way his cock is pressing against my back, I can tell that was as exciting for him as it was for me.

“No, Sir. You can do anything you want to me, Sir,” I say breathlessly.

“You’re such a good girl.” Luca throws the knife across the kitchen floor. I can hear it clang against the ceramic tiles. He pulls my hair and moves his hand down to the juncture of my legs. “A good girl deserves a reward.”

“Thank you, Sir.” My core clenches as Luca’s fingers slide over my soaked lips. Yes. Just like that.

Pressing against the hood of my clit, his finger makes lazy circular motions. My body writhes with need, my hips lifting up to meet his touch. But the more I offer myself to him, the more he withdraws.

“Stay still, doll,” he commands.

I tense my muscles. A doll doesn’t move, but a doll also doesn’t feel this singular yearning for one thing that’s just out of reach.

“I said stay still.” Luca lightly slaps my pussy, and I whimper. It’s hard enough to sting, but the sting is quickly replaced by bristly heat that spreads through my center.

He’s stolen me away, kept me virtually prisoner, tied me up, and inflicted pain on my body. But I know I need to try harder. I want to please him.

“I’m sorry, Sir,” I say.

“That’s okay. Just listen when I tell you to do something,” he says before his fingers play with my folds again, sliding up and down smoothly, aided by my slick wetness.

He slides two long, graceful fingers inside me, filling me up. My arousal builds up higher and higher as Luca’s thumb finds my clit. He finger-fucks me harder and harder, until my head slides up his chest with every thrust.

“Can I please come, Sir?” I ask.

In response, Luca pulls his fingers out of me and slaps my pussy again.

I gasp and cry out, more from the surprise than the pain. I lift my gaze up to look at him.

“Sure, you can come,” he says. “I just wanted to do that first.”

“Thank you, Sir.”

Luca continues to finger-bang me, his thumb rubbing insistently on my clit. But this time, he wraps his hand around my neck, restricting my movements. He whispers, “Come all over my fingers. I want to feel you come.”

When the waves of my climax wash over me, I can only shudder in Luca’s firm embrace. I close my eyes and let warmth spread throughout my body. “Thank you, Sir.” I say as my extremities tingle.

When Luca pushes me off him onto the floor and gets up to his feet, my heart jumps with excitement. But instead of getting on top of me and having his way with me, Luca wordlessly walks away, leaving me lying on the floor.

I’m dirty, breathless, naked, sweaty, I’m bleeding a tiny bit, and my face is probably flushed red.

Why has he left? I know at first he didn’t want to do this, but we were in the middle of something. Walking away just like that was bad manners.

Still, that was a total rush. My anxieties have melted away and momentarily, at least, my mind is a serene oasis.