Was that tenderness? Regret? How could it be, when he refused to give me a choice?
‘I—I won’t…’ I said.
I’d been helpless once before. My desire-drenched brain could grasp that much, at least. During all the years of my childhood, my mother had put her search for the next high, the next deadbeat boyfriend, the next good time above me and Evie.
I’d learned young never to rely on anyone. I couldn’t surrender that. Especially not to a man as dangerous and dictatorial as Vito. No matter how many orgasms he could give me.
‘Yes, you will,’ he demanded, his voice harsh. ‘You must.’
But before I could reply, he delved again with his tongue, circling that aching spot and making me buck against his hold. A moan of raw, unrequited need broke free from my lips. I writhed beneath him, becoming delirious, trying to lift into his mouth, desperate for that denied release.
‘It is the only way to keep you safe,’ he demanded.
I wanted to tell him no… I could never submit my independence, my freedom, nor could I accept his total dominance of my life, no matter how much I enjoyed his dominance in bed…
But before I could enunciate any of it, he nudged the hood of my clit back, fastened his lips on the swollen nub and sucked.
The pleasure exploded in raw, shocking, overpowering waves that launched me off the bed, my sobs turning to groans as the orgasm crested.
Afterglow drenched me, but he continued to suckle. The tortured nub became unbearably tender as another wave of raw pleasure blasted through me.
At last he lifted his head, and I collapsed onto the bed. I could see my juices surrounding his mouth, the sight intensely erotic as he licked his lips.
‘You will submit,’ he murmured again. ‘I will make you.’
I lay shaking, shivering, sated, but also hideously exposed, because it felt as if he had robbed a part of my soul. Ihadsubmitted. Ihadsurrendered to him again.
But when he stood abruptly, I saw the outline of his erection jutting obscenely to tent his suit pants. My sex clenched and released, wanting to feel that huge length inside me once more.
Instead of unzipping himself, though, he tugged my panties back into place, then dragged my dress down. He lifted my chin with his thumb and forefinger, forcing my gaze to his.
‘You will not escape from me. I will protect my child, no matter what you want,’ he murmured.
The threat was clear, his expression deliberately blank, as he demonstrated his control over me. But when he untied my ankle and my wrist, I could see the tension in his jaw, feel the tremor in his fingers. And I knew he was not as composed or as in control as he was making out.
He could not hide his hunger for me, any more than I could hide my hunger for him. And somehow that felt important… Although I would have to wait until the endorphins had stopped charging around my system, and my brain had a chance to engage again, before I could figure outwhyit was important.
Right now, I was just a mass of throbbing sensations and aching vulnerabilities. Forced to accept that however bad a man he was, my body was totally and utterly addicted to him.
‘Strap yourself in for landing,’ he murmured, indicating the seat at the side of the cabin, then turned to leave.
I sat up, uncomfortably aware of the tender spot he had exploited so skilfully still throbbing incessantly between my legs.
‘I w-won’t submit…’ I said again, knowing I had to believe it, or I would lose what little freedom I had left. ‘No matter how many times you seduce me.’
He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes flinty with temper. I don’t know why I found that more encouraging than the controlled expression of moments before, but I did.
‘Do not test me, Mia. I have all the power here, and you none. Remember that.’
The threat echoed in the room as he slammed the cabin door behind him and I heard the lock click. But weirdly the show of strength, the flash of temper felt like progress—despite the realisation he wasn’t wrong about the massive power imbalance between us.
I flopped back on the bed, my head racing along with my heart. But while I had been ashamed of how easily I had succumbed before in the car, I didn’t feel ashamed anymore.
We had a raw, elemental physical connection—something I’d never experienced before. And Ihadchosen to have his baby knowing who he was, so I needed to own that decision now.
Even though he had behaved abominably by stealing me from my home, I sensed he was much more conflicted than he wanted to be. Perhaps that was just wishful thinking on my part. But I had to find the chink in his armour, if there was one…
Please let there be a chink.
