The Game: A Dark Taboo Romance

by LP Lovell

  “No!”

  Tobias laughs and my gaze snaps to him. “So quick to answer that question.” He lifts his champagne to his lips. “Maybe murder is a bit extreme, even for a million dollars, but would you submit yourself? Mind. Body. Soul.”

  I glance at the elevator again, each breath becoming harder as I mentally acknowledge that I am indeed trapped. “Submit…” I whisper.

  “Complete subservience,” he clarifies.

  Is this what they want? To take me. Keep me? “Like a slave?” My skin crawls when I utter that word.

  Tobias drags a thumb across my lip. “Slave rather implies doing something distasteful, doesn't it?”

  Preston's hand glides over my shoulder, along my throat, until he’s cupping my jaw and turning my face toward him. “It does. Slavery is to be debased and degraded. Submission is to be protected, coveted, revered...” His gaze drifts to my chest. “Cherished. Trust me, sweetheart, you'll like it—for the most part.”

  “One million dollars in exchange for one week of your time,” Tobias says.

  My time as their sex toy. “And if I refuse?”

  “Then you may leave.”

  I don’t fully believe him, but I push to my feet anyway. “No amount of money is worth my dignity.”

  “Dignity?” Tobias shakes his head. “And where exactly will your dignity be when you're living on the street? We offer you a salvation not many are afforded. One million dollars for a mere seven days of your pathetic life.”

  My feet root to the spot. How does he know I’m about to be evicted?

  “Sweet Ella,” Preston murmurs as he stands and moves behind me. His hand lands on my shoulder, the heat of his palm searing through me. “We know you have no money. No prospects. We know you're about to lose your apartment...”

  “You have no family, no one to fall back on,” Tobias adds.

  “So tragic what happened to your parents, Ella. And the drunk driver didn’t even get charged.”

  I shake my head, unable to form words. How do they know all these details about my life? “I...”

  “No boyfriend. No job,” Tobias inspects the cuff of his jacket as though the entire notion of my pitiful existence bores him. “Ella, you've got nothing.” Then his gaze flicks to mine. “But you are very beautiful.”

  “Nothing to lose, but everything to gain.” Preston's fingers sweep back and forth across the nape of my neck. I have to question why the hell I’m allowing him to touch me, but I have no answer. Instead, I tell myself that it’s simply self-preservation. “You could be a modern-day Cinderella. All you have to do is sign your name.”

  “You leave, and in a matter of weeks, you’ll be destitute. You stay and in a matter of days…” Tobias pulls a folded piece of paper from his pocket, opens it, then slides it across the table. “In a matter of days, you could save yourself.”

  I pick the paper up, carefully reading over the first few lines. I don't know what I'm expecting, but it isn't this.

  The lump sum of one million dollars will be paid (taking into consideration the rules and stipulation of the game) upon completion of this seven-day legal and binding agreement.

  Rules aligned within the contract, not to be broken, are as follows:

  1) Never leave 2) Never ask questions 3) Never speak of this 4) Never develop feelings 5) Always submit

  “What is this?” I ask even though it's right there in black and white.

  “A game,” Tobias says.

  “A game?”

  “I want you, Ella.”

  Even though it shouldn't, even though he’s not right in the head, those three little words make me weak. He said it with such confidence, as though he knows he will have me.

  Preston passes me a pen. “It’s a contract to play.”

  I skim over the first few sentences again. A game? One where I can’t leave. I can’t ask questions. And the prize is a million dollars. Seven figures for seven days. This would solve my problems. It could give me a new start. “What kind of game?”

  “Whatever kind we want it to be,” Preston says.

  “There’s no explanation as to what the rules even apply to. How can you play a game if you don't know what you're playing?”

  A gust of wind howls across the patio. “All you need to know, sweet Ella, are the rules, and that nothing will be unpleasant for you.” His gaze drops to my lips and my pulse picks up. “Not in the slightest.”

  This is utterly insane. Shaking my head, I push the contract to the side. Tobias moves around me. His fingertips brush the back of my neck. “Do you want me? Look at Preston. Do you want him?” Tobias’s lips brush my ear, and the sensation winds my entire body tight. “Don’t worry, little lamb.” He grabs a handful of my hair and tugs my head back. “It’ll be our dirty little secret.”

  Morally, I know this is wrong, I know I shouldn't even be contemplating this. But I am. I am because they are right. I have nothing to lose. I have nothing—but, at this very moment, I feel as though these two men could give me something. I find myself leaning into him until the tension is wound so tight the air crackles with it. Our lips are nearly touching when his grip tightens in my hair and something sparks in his eyes. “Did I ask you to kiss me?” He lets go of my hair and when he steps away, anger and shame wash over me.

  If I sign, I have a feeling this will be my life for the next seven days. And while I know that, I keep seeing the pile of bills on my counter, the eviction notice, the empty place where Sawyer’s picture once hung. The mounting stress in my chest grows. Where will I be in seven days if I walk away from them right now? On the street...In a shelter? And where will I be in seven days if I stay? And that is the question I can’t ignore. Inhaling, I close my eyes for the briefest moment. “Explain the game to me.”

  “It’s very simple,” Preston says. “Each time you break a rule, you receive a strike. After four strikes, you forfeit the game and leave with nothing.” His lips curl into a devious smirk.

  Nothing if I break the rules four times. One million if I win…. “And how do you win?”

  Tobias smiles before resting against the table. “That's the beauty of it, you won't know until the end.”

  “That seems a little unfair.”

  “Life isn’t fair. What do you have to lose, Ella?”

  And that’s just it. I have nothing to lose—except maybe my life. But for whatever reason, I don't believe that is what they want. They want a game. A form of morbid entertainment, and I need the money.

  Preston’s fingers lightly trail along my arm as I watch Tobias study me. With each passing second, my pulse drives higher and higher. I’m not sure if it’s fear, anxiety, or something else entirely. “Seven days? That’s it?” I ask. God, I’m really going to do this.

  “Seven days,” Tobias says.

  “And you won’t hurt me?”

  Preston lifts my hand and kisses my knuckles. “Never.”

  “And will it be…sexual?”

  “Oh, little lamb.” Tobias throws his head back on a dark laugh. “Definitely.” His heated gaze has my stomach clenching. As wrong as it is, I think I want that. Who wouldn’t? They’re gorgeous, beautiful strangers. And desire rarely requires familiarity.

  My gaze drifts between them. Am I going to whore myself to these two men for a million dollars? It sounds stupid when I put it like that. Surely there’s plenty of people who would… “I'll have to think about it.”

  “I'll give you until you come,” Tobias says.

  “Until I—”

  He moves forward and grabs my chin. “Kiss me.”

  Of course, I could refuse, but if I even think I may sign that contract... I lean in and cautiously press my lips to his. For a moment, he makes no move to touch me or reciprocate the kiss, and I feel stupid. Just as I'm about to pull away, his hand slams around my jaw, his fingers gripping with such force my breath hitches. The kiss deepens long enough that I lose myself in it, and then he pulls away. Without warning, he turns me and pins me face-down by
the back of my neck over the table. A tremor of fear works through me until the slow caress of Tobias's fingers travels up my thigh, lifting my skirt. Heat builds between my legs when he works my thong down.

  “Now, spread your legs,” he commands.

  It’s dirty, but it only adds to the primal, bone-deep attraction I can’t help but embrace right now. I stare across the sprawling patio, at the twinkling city lights on the horizon, and I do as told, exposing myself to two men I do not know.

  “Fucking beautiful,” Preston groans.

  A warm mouth—I’m not sure whose—presses against my pussy, tongue sweeping in a movement that has my legs threatening to buckle. I've never felt so violated and yet prized, so possessed, yet free at the same time.

  A tongue thrusts into me. Someone reaches around to circle my clit. Then Preston drops into a seat in front of me, taking a sip of champagne as he watches Tobias fuck me with his tongue. When my lips part on a gasp, Preston presses his thumb inside my mouth. Instinctively, I suck.

  “She's truly perfect, Tobias,” he groans, looking at me again. “So perfect.”

  Tobias’s fingers dig into my hips as he yanks me back, burying his face between my legs. Lick after lick. I can't take it. I’m going to come undone at any second.

  “See how good we can make you feel, Ella.” Preston tucks my hair behind my ear while Tobias brings me to the brink, and I lose the last shred of inhibition I was clinging to. I moan. I claw at the table, coming hard. He keeps going, sucking over my sensitive skin until I’m begging him to stop. But the second he does, he flips me onto my back. “Decisions, decisions.”

  Preston moves to stand next to Tobias, the two of them completely obstructing the view of the city behind them.

  “What happens after the seven days?” I ask, sitting up.

  “You can go on your way,” Tobias says.

  I study the defined ridges of his jaw, the perfect dip in his lip, his eyes that hold power and promise. These men could easily have any woman they wanted. They are rich and successful; they exude sex with every breath, and yet... “Why me?”

  “Why not you?” Tobias smirks, tilting his head to the side. “You're going to sign it, Ella. But I advise you get all your questions out of the way first because once you sign, there are no more questions. No defiance. Your body is ours.”

  My heart skips a few beats. Sweat breaks out across the small of my back. This is insane. I know it is, but…One million dollars. How can I possibly walk away from that? “What if I want to leave?”

  “You're not a prisoner,” Preston says, passing me the contract and a pen. “You can terminate the contract at any time, sans payment of course.”

  There are moments in everyone's life that define them, that change them. And this, as messed up as it is, I believe is mine. This is a game. I am their pawn. And the prize is one million dollars and two gorgeous men. I take the contract, reading over each line as I weigh my options.

  THIS AGREEMENT, made on this __ day of ______________, 201__, by and between Ella Taylor (participant) and Tobias Benton (host) and Preston Lucas (host), (collectively “The Parties” ) shall set forth all matters relating to and concerning the agreement.

  WHEREAS the parties agree that all activities are voluntary in nature; and

  WHEREAS, the parties agree that no physical harm that could result in death shall occur; and

  WHEREAS, upon the completion of the agreement, Ella Taylor will receive the lump sum of one million dollars, contingent upon the aforementioned rules and stipulations outlined in section1, rules

  NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the promises and mutual covenants of each of the parties, they do hereby covenant and agree that these rules shall not be broken:

  1) Never leave, 2) Never question 3) Never speak of this 4) Never develop feelings 5) Always submit

  SECTION 1

  RULES

  The rules may be broken three times, upon the fourth violation of the rules, the participant loses the game, making this contract null and void. No monetary reward will be offered. If the participant wins the game, a monetary reward of two million dollars will be given in a lump sum.

  SECTION 2

  NONDISCLOSURE

  The participant further agrees that they shall keep all knowledge of this agreement and occurrences that happen within the seven-day agreement window strictly confidential. The participant may not speak of or mention anything to do with the hosts and or their business, Six Degrees. The participant shall not make disparaging remarks about the hosts in person or on online accounts over which the participant has access or control.

  ENFORCEMENT OF AGREEMENT

  All provisions of this Agreement shall be enforceable in a Court of law.

  IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have set their hands and seals the day and year set forth in the Notary Seal.

  WITNESS

  _________________________ _________________________(SEAL)

  ELLA TAYLOR

  WITNESS

  _________________________ _________________________(SEAL)

  TOBIAS BENTON

  WITNESS

  _______________________ _________________________(SEAL)

  PRESTON LUCAS

  And I sign it.

  A small smile pulls at Tobias's lips when he glances at the ink scrawled across the crisp white paper. “And just so you know, there are no safe words.” He takes the contract, then turns his back on me and heads toward the elevator.

  I’m pretty sure this is how Tobias Benton became one of the richest, most successful men in the world. I never stood a chance.

  3

  The elevator doors close and now it’s just Preston and me on the rooftop. He cradles the champagne flute against his chest, watching me like a caged animal. While Tobias intimidates me, he strikes me as a man with rules. Overly controlled and poised. Preston, on the other hand, seems like the wild card of the two, and I’m not sure who is more dangerous...

  Preston polishes off his drink, then places the empty glass on the table. “Let's be on our way then.”

  Now? I have nothing with me. Surely they didn’t expect me to just leave with them. “I have to go to my apartment and—”

  “You don't need anything but your lovely self.” His hand lands on the small of my back, forcing me to move. “And besides… It’s all been taken care of.”

  I open my mouth to speak and he presses his finger to my lips, one brow raised. “No questions and complete submission, remember?”

  What have I just agreed to?

  We stop at the elevator and he swipes a card key through the reader. A dim green light blinks before the whir of the motor comes to life. Seven days. Starting at this very moment. I have no belongings with me, no one knows where I am. No one knows where I am... The doors to the elevator slowly part.

  “People may wonder where I've disappeared to,” I say, following Preston inside.

  He corners me against the wall and dips his face to my neck, inhaling. “Are you worried that we might do something awful to you?”

  “No,” I lie. I try to breathe, to focus on something that isn't the heat of his body or the scent of his cologne.

  His teeth nip at my ear. “Does it concern you that no one knows where you are...”

  “I just...” I drag in a breath in a pitiful attempt to stop this suffocating feeling. “Don't want to worry my friends by disappearing for a week...”

  “You don't have anyone who will care enough to even notice you're gone.”

  And my heart stops its rhythmic drumming for a brief second. A trace of fear and undeniable hurt surface. He’s right. They could kill me, and no one would even notice.

  “Complete submission means don't lie to me.” He moves back, his dark gaze locking with mine. The elevator continues to fall, passing each floor with a beep, and the longer he stares at me, the heavier I feel. “I...”

  “We own you, Ella. For seven days, everything that you were no longer exists.”

&n
bsp; The door to the limo shuts behind Preston as he settles in to my right. Tobias is on my left, staring through the window. The car pulls off and my gaze focuses on the raised partition that separates us from the driver.

  “The driver is aware of the situation,” Tobias says like he can read my mind. “Don’t worry.”

  My chest grows tight as I consider how stupid it probably was for me to sign that contract, but then again, I am literally at the bottom of the barrel.

  “I'm not...” The words get caught in my throat like thick molasses. “I'm not sure if I want to...”

  Tobias’s steely gaze drifts over to me, and my muscles tense.

  “You're scaring her, Tobias,” Preston says.

  Tobias obviously doesn’t care because he grabs onto me and drags me into his lap so that I’m straddling him. Then he takes one of my hands and places it on his warm chest. “Tell me what you feel?” Tight muscle bunch beneath the smooth fabric separating my hand from his bare skin. The steady beat of his heart thumps against my palm.

  “What do you feel, Ella?”

  “You,” I whisper. “And you scare me.”

  On a smirk, he traces his fingertips across my cheek. The touch is soft, tender—the touch of a lover, yet, that is not what this man is. Far from it.

  “Fear is what makes us feel alive,” he says before his lips press against mine. Soft yet demanding. For a few seconds, I forget that I'm in a car with two men I don't know. I forget that the man kissing me wants me to be his whore. And why?

  Because they make it disappear. They make me want to sell a lot more than my body for this sensation, this pull, this need.

  His hand glides up my back, pulling me so tightly against his chest that my back bows. The only thing between my pussy and his hardening cock is the material of his pants and a scrap of lace underwear. He grabs my jaw, ending the kiss and forcing me to look at him.

  “So beautiful,” he groans against my ear. “So perfect. And I haven't even been inside you yet, little lamb.”

  A small laugh seeps from his lips as he carefully moves me away from his lap and into the seat between Preston and him.