Chapter One
His
I shook my head slightly as my heart slammedinto my stomach, sure I was dreaming, sure this couldn’t possiblybe real. For a moment, I felt like a deer caught in headlights; yetI really wasn’t as surprised as much as I was horrified by the factmy instincts had been right all along.
I had been purchased by the man of my worstnightmares.
The owner was nowmyowner.
He was never really going to let me go, noteven to another person. I only wondered what the final straw wasthat had solidified the decision, but I realized it didn’t matter.I was fucked beyond recognition, butatleast,I knew exactly who and what I was dealing with – mysingle silver lining.
The owner glanced at the guard stillstanding in the room and motioned with his head for him to leave.The moment he walked out the door, I felt the chill of panic andterror slowly start to sink in. Everything was about to get realugly real fast, especially with that sick look my new “owner” wasgiving me. I wanted to wipe it right off his gorgeous smug face …with a cheese grater.
“Now, before we go,” he said heading over tome with heavy, determined steps. I stood up immediately, fear andrage boiling inside me as my hands raised at the ready, but beforemy fists were even closed, his strong fingers were already wrappedaround my upper arms and pushing me back toward the desk. “I havesomething for you.” He smirked.
“Get the fuck off me!” I yelled as I movedto strike him, but he just maneuvered me like a rag doll and forcedmefacedownonto the desk behind us. I felt my stomachshrink as pain exploded in the right side of my face. He handled mewith much more force than he usually did—not a single hint ofhesitation. He didn’t have to hold back anymore, and therealization made my heart pulse with anxiety.
His hand then reached around my head,clamping down on my mouth and the entire lower half of my faceinadvertently. Tightening his grip, he nearly squeezed my faceuntil it felt like my jaw would snap. I screamed and fought, but itonly came out as a muffled sound.
“Allow me to let you in on a littlesomething,” he seethed in my ear from behind. “Whateverrestrictions I had for myself around you before are now gone, whichmeans if I want to break your jaw …” he said as he squeezed evenharder. I screamed as I clawed at his hand and wrist, praying hewould let go. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t move, and I couldn’teven think. “I fucking will because I can. Because I officiallyownyou now.”
My nails dug into his skin, sure I wouldcause him to bleed, but it did nothing. Until his grip finally letup, his hand remained in place, unyielding in his strength. Iwhimpered with relief, attempting to calm my breathing as tearsbegan to form in my eyes. But I refused to let them fall. I couldget through this.
“Do you understand me, Jaden?” he askedharshly.
Hearing my name on his tongue sent a strangevibe through my system,pulsingstraight up my back and plunging right into my stomach. I didn’tlike the feeling. His voice and my name didn’t mix well. They feltwrong, like breaking physics wrong, and it disgusted me to thecore.
“I said do you understand or do you onlyrespond to slave now?” he roared, the pressure returning to my facefrom his reinforced grip. I screamed again, nodding as hard as Icould with what little movement I had left.
“Good girl,” he said and released my facebut kept my body bent in front of him over the desk. I gasped forair, my heart racing in my chest as I tried to calm myself and keepthe tears from spilling. “Now, if you can behave for one second, wemight actually be able to get something importantaccomplished.”
He then lifted a black leatherbriefcasefrom the floor and placed it on thedesk in front of me. Unhooking the latches, he lifted the lid andconfusion came over me.
There, laid perfectly on beautiful red satincushioning were five silver plated rings. They resembled braceletsas they were about a centimeter wide and had tiny diamonds aligningthe center of the rings all the way around. Two sets of the ringswere the same size, two being very small andoval-shaped, and the other two just a littlelarger. The last one was much larger and also circular. If I hadn’tknown any better, I would have thought they were nothing more thanfancy jewelry. I looked up at him in confusion, but he looked soexcited that I doubted he would have answered the tornado ofquestions spinning in my head.
“The fuck?” I whispered under my breath,returning my gaze to the briefcase.
Still standing behind me and placing hishands on my bare shoulders, his mouth dipped low to my ear. “Theseare your new chains, my dear. They will symbolize my ownership ofyou and prevent you from ever running from me.”
“I wouldn’t count on it,” I spat.
His fist slammed down onto the desk justinches from my head, and I couldn’t stop the flinch as fear joltedthrough my body.
“You wanna bet?” he seethed, that smoothnessin his voice almost snake-likeasit coiled through my ears.
I hunched my shoulders as a defensivereaction, and I tried to keep my brave face on, but it was becomingincreasingly difficult. My head swamwitha heavy current of emotions—rage, pain, confusion,fear, and utter hopelessness. I felt compelled to back away fromthe rings, but with the wall of a man behind me, I wasn't goinganywhere.
Fortunately, he walked away, heading over toone of the drawers of the desk, and pulled out some kind ofcloth-like material. I righted myself immediately as he unfoldedthe material and held it out for me to see. It was a short fireengine red silk nightie with more red lace on the fringe.
“Now,” he said, feeling the material in hishands, “if you can behave and put the cuffs on without a fuss, I’lllet you wear this on our way home. I’m sure you want to be rid ofthat rag of a dress. But if you want to resist and risk pissing meoff, we’ll continue without clothes and you’ll still end up withthe cuffs on anyway.”
Goddammit.
Clothes and chains? Or no clothes and stillchains? What epic choices.
My eyes quickly glanced around the room as Iestimated my chances of either getting to the door or getting tosomething relatively pointy. Not even so much as a pen was on thedamn desk and the door was about fifty feet away as I stared at it,compelling it to open and free me from my new fresh Hell.
“Whatever stupid ideas you haverunningthrough your little head, I wouldseriously reconsider them,” he warned, but my eyes were still onthe door.
