Read with BonusRead with Bonus

Chapter 7 : Where It All Started...

Adrian...

I watch Bert and Lucas drive away, acutely aware of my Esclave standing behind me. I bet she must be yearning to be inside that car right now. As soon as the car disappears around the corner, I swivel on my heels and glance at my naughty girl.

I find her kneeling near the bottom of the stairs with tears streaming down her cheeks. The dim fluorescent light on the ceiling of the extended porch reflects on her glistening tears, making them appear like shiny pearls.

The sight of her in that position… enthralls me. I behold her for a moment before approaching on light footsteps. She squares her shoulders and turns her face to the side when I come into her view.

Her stubbornness is amusing. We both know it's going to take her nowhere. But still, she persists on provoking me with her petty attempts to show me she's not afraid of me. If only that was true…

She's terrified. I can see it in her trembling frame and quivering chin.

“Esclave.” I whisper the word in a soft, pitiful tone and watch the expression on her change, slowly and completely. I know she hates that word, but secretly loves it. She likes it when I call her that; it makes her feel like she belongs.

And she does; she belongs to me and only me.

Bert wanted to take her back and I know exactly why. But after the incident with Carson, I was barely holding onto my self-control when she tumbled on her hands and knees in front of me. And the moment she flipped me off, I felt something snap inside me. I couldn't think past bending her over the stairs and spanking her ample ass until it's bright red and she's withering under my body, begging for more.

And to make the situation worse, she went on accusing me of cheating on her and questioning my loyalty. I didn't know she cared so much but when I saw her hurtful eyes and defensive stature, I knew that I'd been oblivious to her feelings for me.

I've got under her skin without even trying to. What can be more exciting and empowering than knowing that the woman who has the ultimate control over my dark desires is now dependent on me for her comfort and safety, along with her pain and pleasure.

I didn't have to worry about her ruining me, after all. She's just as ruined by my actions, as I am by her beauty and wits.

With a slight smile, I bend my knees in front of her and force her to look at me. “Ask me for anything and it'll be yours.”

She blinks her long dark lashes, her deep eyes search my face for something. A frown appears between her brows. She sniffles lightly then asks in confusion, “Why? I thought you're going to punish me. You didn't appear to be pleased when I threw that tantrum over your cheating inside the club.”

So, she does realize that she has misbehaved and she deserves to be punished. I smirk at her. She's going to be the first slave in History to admit her fault and expect to be punished when she's been given a chance to save herself from the pain.

I shake my head, hiding my intrigued smile and tighten my clasp on her chin. “You will be punished alright. But your acceptance has pleased me, so I'm rewarding you with an opportunity to make a wish and I'll give it to you at any cost. But don't ask me to set you free.” I glare in her wide eyes. “I've told you before. I will never let you go. You're mine.”

“Only because you've paid for me.” She glares right back. Righteous anger shines on her face and she jerks her chin out of my clasping fingers.

I feel myself getting angry once again. This girl… Damn it! She's infuriating and so not amiable. I've even started to doubt if she deserves to get what she wants tonight.

Leashing my anger, I bare my teeth and glare harder. When a deep flush blooms across her cheeks and neck, I lean in closer and grit out through my teeth, “I don't like to repeat myself. Ask and you shall get what you want. But if you don't want to take advantage, then it's fine by me. I'll get straight to the point. Get up.”

I grab her upper arm and wrench her upright with me. She frantically grabs my wrist and begs, “Stop, please. I'm sorry. I have to say something.”

Raging emotions battle for dominance, demanding to command her to crawl by my side and wanting to cradle her in my arms to protect her from whatever I'm going to do to her.

With a frustrated sigh, I make myself loosen my tight fingers around her arm and take a pause, nodding for her to go on. I don't trust myself enough to turn back to face her. I'll probably end up pulling her in for a bruising kiss. Not a good idea when I'm in public and have barely any control.

She hastens to answer me. Her meek voice trembles as she pleads, “I don't want to go back inside your club. Take me anywhere but in there. Please…”

Okayyyyy… Wait a second… That's it??

I turn my head back to give her an incredulous look. “That's what you want? To go away from here? No fancy or expensive things, no begs for reduction in your punishment. All you want is away from here?”

She shakes in my grasp and nods. Glossy eyes stare at some spot behind me as she bites her lips and holds her chin up.

I stab my free hand through my hair. “You never cease to surprise me, Esclave.” My eyes bore into her dark eyes. “You just wasted your wish. I wasn't going to take you back inside the club. I was leading you to the car so we can drive to my place. You didn't have to ask me to take you away.”

Her jaw drops, eyes flare wide as she stares in utter surprise. “Crap.” I hear her mutter under her breath and shake my head.

I guide her to the R8 and hold the passenger side door open. She settles without any question and buckles up. The words, "good girl" are on the tip of my tongue but I save it for later. I have high hopes for my Esclave and something tells me that she won't disappoint.

Rosella's Surprise…

I can't believe I'm so stupid.

I just wasted my golden opportunity.

Staring straight ahead without looking, I try to wrap my mind around what happened a minute ago. But I can't, it's too painful. God… what's wrong with me? When did I become so ignorant?

I should have figured it out that he wasn't going to take me back to meet the woman who was going to be his sex partner for tonight. How could I let jealousy rule over my decisions? How did I become so irrational? This is all so fucked-up, seriously.

A frightening thought rears inside my head as my mind runs wild with disbelief. Did my acceptance of my fate affect my decision? Have I got so comfortable with the idea of being punished that I didn't even think about it while making my wish?

Christ! I'm beyond all of my rationality and reason. I've become my own enemy.

A light touch on my hand, resting in my lap, breaks me out of my horrendous thoughts. Like a mecha robot, I glance at Adrian in a swift manner, turning my head in a perfect 90 degree angle.

But as his electric blue eyes sear into mine, I falter. My normal breathing pace hitches and I find myself blushing hotly when his fingers wrap around my wrist.

Is he trying to show me something? — Show me he cares!?

My eyes, full of girlish wistful hopes, fall on his hand on my hand. But instead of entwining our fingers, he just turns my wrist upwards.

Of course, he isn't showing anything. He's looking for something. Damn me and my naive thoughts!

“How did you get that?” He asks in a hard voice. His harsh tone makes my heart stutter.

“How did I get what?” I ask, my voice pitched but scared. What the hell is he talking about?

“That burn scar.” He turns my wrist so that I can see it, the scar. I remember when I got this. But damn, he's observant.

“Oh, this.” I trace it with a finger and frown as I answer. “I burned myself on the side of a hot pan when I was cooking dinner last night. Lucas had given me some cream to apply afterwards. It has healed. See?”

I show him the fading scar. But his expressions darken anyway.

“Why were you cooking? What happened to the chef?” He enquires, a scowl marking his expression.

“I don't know. But I didn't mind. I love cooking.” I confess then shift in my seat with discomfort. Woah… Why did I tell him that? I dart a quick look at his face. But his expression is impassive.

We fall into an uncomfortable silence. Adrian makes no comment on my revelation and I feel disappointed, more severely than I should be. If he was interested in anything other than my body, then he should have enquired about my real life skills instead of ignoring me like I'm not sitting beside him in his car. He didn't even look at me. Stoic Bastard!

I seeth in my seat silently, shifting so that I'm facing away from him. Embracing the simmering anger with open arms, I bury my unreasonable pain deep in my chest and curl up, pulling my feet up to wrap my arms around my bent knees.

The closed stores on the dead stinking street blur past us as we drive with a high tampo. Thanks to the plush leather upholstery, I can barely feel the bumps and ridges we come across on the road. The wheels glide smoothly over every obstacle, allowing me to have a stable view of the outside.

When my eyes flicker towards the roof, I catch a glimpse of dark moonless sky, rapidly getting swallowed by dark sparking clouds. I lean forward, pressing my nose against the window and squint up in the thrilling darkness. A water drop blots the window screen where I had put my nose, then another falls beside it, then another… and within seconds we are being plummeted by rainwater bullets.

My grudge against Adrian's indifference to my cause forgotten, I lose myself into the heavy pour down. Listening to the clashing clouds producing thunder and lightning. Immersing me into a whole new sense of calm that has nothing to do with silence.

You know why I'm feeling calm?

It's because the weather outside the safety of the sleek sports car represents the violence that goes on inside my body. Since the day I met Adrian Black, my whole life has changed, either for the worse or for better, but it has changed.

I no longer suffer from self-loathing. Though I loathe my parents for handing me over like a piece of property. I've learned to fight back. Though I never win. But I don't see myself stopping to struggle anytime soon now. I've discovered the darker side of my soul, that craves exactly what Adrian gives me. He treats me like dust and calls me a slave… I hate it all but my hatred is not strong enough to diminish the feeling of belonging that comes with his rude handling of my mind and body.

I don't think I'll ever change it all, even if I ever get a chance to undo my past… and that realization is even more terrifying and harrowing than knowing that tonight he won't hold back with me. I knew the minute I saw the gun in his hand, I'd pushed all of his hot buttons and something that I had said in my hurt and anger, hit him right in the gut.

I fear my future, but more than that, I fear my latching emotions. Maybe Adrian has fucked me up with all of his manipulation and mind games. Maybe my mind has rewired itself. And Instead of hating Adrian for what he does to me, my mind turns everything against me and I end tangled in the webs of my own recurring emotions.

Love… hate… lust… Love… hate… lust… Love… hate… lust…

I want to cry. But tears don't come.

I want to laugh. But uncertainty robs me.

I want to fight. But it turns me into a lustful woman.

What the fuck am I supposed to do when he turns me against myself? I can fight him but not myself… it's not possible for me.

Out of nowhere, I feel myself sniffle. Shifting away from the window, I touch my cheeks with tentative hands and feel moisture. I glare at my fingers, glistening with my swept tears and feel my anger resurface from the layers of calm that blanket it.

Wonderful! When I want to cry, these treacherous tears won't come. And when I want to just exist and don't recognize my feelings, these tears appear out without permission to humiliate me.

I was right. I am my own enemy!

Livid with temper, I rake my hands through my hair then hide my face behind the cover of my palms. I want to groan out loud, curse and break something… something that can't be repaired. I want to know how broken things look like… then, maybe, I'll stop myself from giving into the urges that no sane person would ever have.

“You need to stop overthinking.”

Adrian's smoky voice penetrates through the chaos in my mind and I cling to it. Taking my time to focus on the syllables and try to understand what he's telling me.

“Whatever you're trying to figure out in your head. Don't. It's not helping you. Can't you see that?”

“I can't.” I raise my head and glance at him with tears in my eyes.

He's sitting ramrod straight in his seat, staring straight ahead with an expressionless face. But his white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel tells me that he's hiding his emotions. I know he can feel, maybe not everything but he can, some certain emotions… like lust and hate… the most intense and unforgiving of all emotions.

I know because Bert has told me all about his condition, with the promise that I'll never let him know that I know, he suffers more than anyone, even more than me.

“You must think I've gone crazy.” I mumble and slump back in my seat, smiling dryly then add, “can you roll down the window on my side?”

He shakes his head without looking at me. “The wind is whipping too fast. You'll be soaked within a minute.”

“I don't care. Just roll it down, please.”

His lips press into a hard line, eyes glaring out of the window but he presses a button on the console and my window slides down. Freezing water sprinkles inside the car and I lean forward to cover the window frame with my body and stop the water from reaching inside.

He was right. I'm dripping within the minute I poke my head out. Closing my eyes, I rest my head on my folded arms on the edge of the window frame and allow the rain to wash away my tears.

With a deep sigh, I retreat and tap the button on the console to roll up the window. I sit back and swipe my wet face with my shirt.

“Where are we going?” I ask when I notice a sign board, off the road, saying we are on the outskirts of the city. We've been driving for a long time now. If he was taking me back to his house, then weg should have reached by now. But that isn't where he's taking me.

“You'll find out soon enough.” He replies evasively.

When I glance in his direction, I find his lips twitching at the corners. Oh oh, now what?

Soon enough, we are pulling onto a route that's adorned with palm trees and bushy flowering shrubs on either side. The heavy rainstorm does nothing to disrupt the exotic vibes as we drive in surprisingly comfortable silence.

But I can't keep my mouth shut anymore. So, I ask him something I've been dying to know.

“Early in the club, when I had barged in on you and your…” I trail off, searching for the word.

“The stripper.” Adrian puts the word in my mouth and I scowl.

But accept it. “Whatever. You said you can explain. I want to know what you'd meant by that.”

“I told you to stop so that I could explain. But you didn't and now I don't want to. You tell me, do you deserve an explanation after humiliating me like that?” He enquires softly.

“You felt humiliation!?” I exclaim a little too sharply and quickly clam up.

“Of course, I did. Why are you so surprised?” His expression harden.

Crap! I'm not supposed to know.

My mind scrambles to fix my mistake. “I'm not surprised. I just… I thought you didn't care what people think…” I come up with a lame response.

“That might have some truth.” He smirks and I let out a relieved breath.

But he hasn't answered me. Not even looked at me, once and it's irritating me now.

“So… You won't tell me then?” I prompt him, keeping my tone light and indifferent.

Frigid Silence is his response.

I sneak a peek at his stoic face and come up with nothing but disappointment. He won't tell me. Maybe I've pushed him too hard. Hell, he isn't looking at me now, so it's clear.

“I had asked for the best stripper of my club. I thought I could distract myself with her. But I wasn't into it… so, I decided to leave. Then one of my staff members came in and told me that there was a woman who had forced her way inside the club, saying that she was my esclave. And before I could do anything, you bustled through the door, believed what you saw and ran away from me.”

I remain perfectly still in my seat, daring not to even breath as I absorb his word. The revelation is shocking but sounds true. But everything that comes out of his mouth, it sounds true.

I lick my lips once and glance at Adrian. “So, you didn't have sex with her?”

“No. I was never going to have sex with her. I needed to distract myself, not her. Most probably, I would have told her to suck me off then left.”

“Why weren't you into the act? She looked like she knew what she was doing.” I ask, feeling ridiculously curious.

He opens his mouth and I expect him to give me one of his matter-of-factly answers. But when nothing comes out of his mouth and his eyes flicker to me, I feel a smile forming on my lips.

My god… Did Adrian Black just become nervous?

“What was it?” I coax him to go on and tell me.

He sighs heavily, in defeat or resignation, I don't know. After a brief pause, he responds tersely. “That's none of your concern.”

“Maybe. But I want to know.” I state coyly, smiling wide as I stare at him.

“Don't look at me like that.” A hard scowl takes over his expression as he growls.

I pull back, surprised by the sudden change in his behavior. “Like what? I didn't do anything.”

His expressions have now set in stone and the vibes I'm getting from him are dangerously cold and closed off. He's shutting me out again… just like he had done on the balcony the morning after the night we had sex for the first time.

“No more inquisition. Sit back and shut up. This has changed nothing.” He snaps, just as we take a bend in the road, emerging out on the path towards a huge luxurious looking hotel building.

Silence fills the space between us as he pulls into the driveway and we start up a winding path to the front of the hotel. When we reach the top, recognition slaps me hard on the face.

How did I not remember it before?

It's the same hotel where Adrian had taken me the first night, right after rescuing me when I'd tried to run away.

This is the place where everything started.

I get out of the car with Adrian and watch him as he talks to the hotel manager. A sickening feeling turns my stomach when he approaches me and leads me inside with a hand on the small of my back… exactly the way he had led me out of this place that day after spending the night in here.

“Aren't you excited to be back where it all started, Esclave?” Adrian asks me as we stand in front of his private elevator, waiting for the lift to arrive.

I turn my head and tilt up my chin. As soon as I take in his dark electric blue eyes, hooded with lust and violence and see his breathtaking lopsided smile, my heart pounds inside my chest with terror. I swallow hard, gasping for air and try to hold back my fearful tears.

I know exactly why he has brought me here.

He's going to finish what he had started… Tonight.

Previous Chapter
Next Chapter