I whimper and press my face against the fabric of his dark jeans. I’m probably smearing snot and tears all over the expensive denim. I’ll likely pay for that later too, but I find a small kernel of comfort in his quiet shushing and his hands that stroke my hair protectively. With a sneer, his brother leaves the room, and I glance up at my captor. “Please don’t let him hurt me, please.”
Ares runs his thumb over my cracked lips. I feel the split open up, and wince at his eagerness to cause me even the smallest amount of pain. Blood, sharp and metallic, rolls over my tongue. “Please what?”
“Sir, please, Sir,” I hurry to correct myself because I don’t think I can take another beating right now.
“Good girl.” He lifts his blood-stained thumb to his mouth and sucks it clean. “And the only one who gets to hurt you is who?”
“You, Sir.” Sobs, uncontrollable and so thick I can barely breathe, rack my body. “Only you.”
“That’s right.” His eyes are deeper than sin as he smiles down at me. He’s pleased, as if I passed some impossible test. “Come. Let’s get you back to bed.”
I nod because though I know I’ll never sleep right now, the alternative, the uncertainty of what he’ll do next, is harrowing. I wonder if he’ll try to touch me, try to fuck me now that I’ve told him I’ll be a good girl and do anything he says. A shudder runs through me.
“Don’t worry, Pet. You need to rest and to heal before we do anything else.” He pulls me to my feet and helps me to the bed. I lie down at his insistence, letting him fluff my pillow and tuck the blanket over me. The mattress dips with his weight, and fear seizes my chest, but he strokes the hair back from my face and whispers, “Such a beauty. You’re going to make an incredible submissive, little one.”
I frown and fight back tears that spill over my cheeks anyway. How can anyone be capable of such tenderness, and yet be so malicious in the same breath? Ares has the face of a god but the heart of a monster. There is true ugliness in him—darkness, bitter and rotten. But there is compassion too, I realize, as he strokes my face, carefully avoiding the bandage on my forehead. He must have taken care of me. I saw his expression earlier when he realized what I’d done. He sprinted toward my cage. He was afraid. There was fear in him after all. Fear for me. I’ve seen it. And I plan to exploit it.
Despite the adrenaline and anger surging through me, my eyelids grow heavy. A ghost of a smile teases my lips, and I hear his voice, low and soothing in my ear. “Sleep, Pet. You’re safe with me.”
***
When I wake again,my head is still pounding, but the fogginess had abated enough for me to know I’m being watched. Which is ridiculous, because I’m always being watched.
I sit and pull the blanket to my neck to cover my body, which is also ridiculous because my captor has seen me completely naked. He’s touched me, had his fingers inside me, and is familiar with all of my most intimate places.
“How long have I been asleep?”
He grins. “Long enough.”
Bastard.He’s determined to keep me confused at every turn. “It’s time for your bath, Pet.”
My experience with the bathroom so far hasn’t always been unpleasant. The first time was terrifying, and after I’d tried to escape I’d paid for it in pain, in hours of agony hung from the ceiling, unable to relax at all. But the memory of the warm water soothing my tired body, and the orgasm that followed, comes flooding back, and I’m suddenly longing for the tub.
“Now, are you going to obey, or do I need to use these again?” He holds up a leather cuff. My leather cuff. The one I was wearing yesterday. The one I used to get myself off with. The one I didn’t even realize was missing from my wrists. I’d climbed out of the bed, I’d bolted across the room and thrown my arms around Ares and begged him to protect me, and I hadn’t even realized I’d been free, or at least a part of me had been free. I hadn’t noticed at all.
He runs it along the underside of his nose. “It smells like you.” His tongue darts out and licks the thick black leather. “Tastes like you too.”
I gulp. I don’t know what choice to make. On one hand, having my arms free would be a much smarter option. If I got the chance to escape, it would be easier to fight them both with my hands free. Then again, with my hands bound I couldn’t stop him from touching me. Maybe that sounds crazy, it’s not as if I want him to touch me, but in allowing him to do so, I could gain his trust. Wait until he lets his guard down and then strike.
As if sensing my unease at the question he smiles and climbs to his feet. Ares takes my hands, crossing my wrists one over the other, and fastens the buckles tightly. Not so tight it cuts off the circulation, but tight enough to feel the pressure there and mourn the loss of my freedom. I should have said no cuffs.Why did I hesitate?
“Come, Pet. I don’t mind making your choices for you.” He walks toward the door, but then turns when he realizes I’m not following.
“Ares?”
He frowns, anger sparking in his eyes.
“Sir,” I finish quickly, darting my gaze to the ground. “Please don’t hurt me.”
“Do as you’re told, and I won’t need to . . . No more than necessary.”
“Necessary?” I ask.Why does he have to hurt me at all?
“There are things I must teach you, and not all of it is easy. You will be pushed to your limits, and when you think you can’t take anymore, I’ll show you how strong you really are.”
“Why? Why are you doing this? Why do you have to train me at all? Why hurt me at all?”
“Enough questions, Pet. Come.”