“I don’t understand how taking care of me and respecting my boundaries is manipulative,” I reasoned. “You showed me who you really are today, and the man I see isn’t an animal.”
“That’s because you only see what I’ve wanted you to see,” he countered, the rasp in his voice caught between menace and desperation. “You don’t know what I’m capable of. Your pretty little brain couldn’t even imagine the twisted things I want from you, what I planned to do to your deliciously delicate body as soon as I obtained Adrián’s permission to fuck you. You have no idea what it would really be like to be mine.”
Mine. He caressed the final word, as though he savored the taste of it on his tongue. He’d declared his claim over me like this several times since he’d taken me hostage. It obviously meant more to him than simply being in a romantic relationship with me. The term was utterly possessive, irrevocable.
The intensity unnerved me, but I wouldn’t permit him to pull away because I was too cowardly to fight for him. Mateo was bleeding inside, and now that he’d shown me the wound, I couldn’t walk away.
“Fine.” I flung the word at him like a challenge, goading him. “I don’t know what it would be like to be yours. So, show me.”
He made a harsh, animal sound, gnashing his teeth. I’d provoked the beast, but I had to trust that he wouldn’t hurt me.
“You don’t know what you’re asking for,” he growled. “I’ve given you a pretty little fantasy version of how it would be between us. You don’t want to see the truth.”
“Yes, I do,” I insisted. “Show me. Make me yours.”
His features sharpened to something almost feral. “You’ll regret this,” he warned, the bulge in his jeans signaling my victory. “Go get changed. Put on the most revealing dress you own. Nothing sweet or innocent will do for where I’m taking you.”
I shrank back slightly, off-balance. This wasn’t the direction I’d expected the conversation to take. “Where are we going?”
He flashed his teeth in a wicked, hungry grin. “If you’re mine, you don’t question my decisions. You obey.”
I swallowed hard and managed a shaky nod.
“We’re leaving in half an hour. For the rest of the night, you do exactly as I say. You don’t even speak without my permission.”
My lips parted, but I locked down my protest. If Mateo was trying to scare me off, he was doing a really good job of it. He’d been bossy before, but our interactions had always been playful.
He wasn’t playing right now.
I pressed my lips together, demonstrating my willingness to comply with his demands.
His black eyes glinted, his mouth taking on a cruel twist. “Good girl.”
Despite his unnerving energy, the words were an instant, visceral trigger. The wash of pleasure that rolled through my system was strong enough to draw a small moan from my chest, and my panties grew damp with arousal. I swayed toward him, my body drawn to his as though he was magnetic.
His brow creased in confusion, and he stepped back, as though he was trying to escape an answering pull toward me.
He shook his head, attempting to clear it.
“Thirty minutes,” he muttered, turning and stalking away from me.
I remained rooted to the spot for several seconds, my mouth watering as I admired his muscular frame. Mateo had always been sinfully sexy, but suddenly, I was ravenous for him. My body pulsed with desire, my nipples pebbling to hard buds. All that prevented me from chasing after him and climbing his big body was his demand for my obedience.
Whatever I’d just agreed to engage in was more than a little frightening, and the intensity of my response was even more disconcerting.
For Mateo, I would face these fears.
And judging by my current state of arousal, I would enjoy it.Mateo had never looked more dangerous or more irresistible. His tight black t-shirt, dark wash jeans, and heavy motorcycle boots were no different than usual, but he pulsed with dark, powerful energy that made me want to fall at his feet and worship him like my own personal god.
I didn’t even consider teasing him for selecting the Batmobile as our ride for the evening. He didn’t utter a single word to me for the duration of the forty-minute drive to our destination, but his reticence didn’t worry me. If anything, his aloof demeanor intensified my arousal.
Every time the impulse to chatter to fill the silence popped into my mind, his order for my absolute obedience weighed on me more heavily, sinking in to my psyche and setting off an arousal response in every sensitive spot on my body.
Good girl.
Obeying him felt so good. I didn’t have to twist myself in knots to try to win his approval, because he’d told me exactly how he expected me to behave. The knowledge that my compliance pleased him elicited physical gratification.