by LP Lovell
But I do need Tobias. His love may be like a drug, some dark, destructive force that if taken in the wrong dose will usher in death, but I do need it. And I think he needs me. The energy that swirls around him and lives in the air between us is limitless, self-sacrificing, and isn’t that the definition of love?
I glance over my shoulder at Tobias. He’s unfastening the buttons of his dress shirt when his gaze subtly drops to where the handle of the knife presses my lower back. I’ve killed for him. Will he kill for me?
I trail my fingers down Sawyer’s chest as I climb off him, holding his gaze as I back toward Tobias and circle behind him. “Do you want him, Sawyer?” My attention remains on Sawyer, naked and fisting his cock on the bed as I glide my palm beneath the parted material of Tobias's shirt. “Isn't he beautiful?”
When I slide the shirt from Tobias’s broad shoulders, I notice Sawyer take a heavy breath. “I have wanted him long before you and I ever met, pretty.”
And I realize that this is his fantasy. I think he may have manipulated and orchestrated this entire thing to have Tobias. I was just a pawn.
With a sadistic grin, Sawyer gets off the bed and opens the nightstand drawer. I tense when he pulls out a gun. Suddenly my knife seems pathetic. Tobias reaches around, placing a protective hand on my hip and shoving me further behind him as Sawyer approaches.
“It’s been years that I’ve wanted you.” He stops beside Tobias and kisses his throat. “But you would never let me have you.”
Tobias’s jaw tenses when Sawyer leans in to kiss him again. And as he does, he simultaneously places the barrel of the gun to my temple. “Now, this makes it much more exciting, doesn't it?”
We have one more game to play, and when we win, I will forever be Tobias’s little lamb and he will be my shepherd.
32
TOBIAS
He has a gun to my little lamb’s head. Anger eats its way through me, and I fight back the urge I have to snap his neck, only because such an action would not end well for her. “Move the gun away from her.”
“Now, where would the danger be if I did that?” Sawyer smirks. “I don't know why you've always fought this, Tobias, I really don't.” He takes my hand and wraps it around his hard cock. “Unfasten his slacks, Ella.”
She fumbles with my fly, her hands shaking as she unfastens the zipper and shoves my pants down my thighs.
He presses the barrel of the gun harder against her temple and forces her to her knees. “And while you’re down there, suck my cock.”
My jaw tightens. She looks up, her eyes full of anger as she places her lips against the head of his cock. The handle of the knife must still be sticking out from the waist of her jeans, but I guess Sawyer hasn’t noticed because he’s too focused on this. On me and her. On sex and power. I let go of his dick to swipe the knife, but he grabs my wrist. “No, Tobias. You are going to help her.”
And how long do I let this go on? How far do I let him go? How much will it take for him to lose himself? That is, after all, the aim of the game—for the player to lose. And this game is still very much in motion.
Eyeing the gun still at Ella’s head, I stroke his cock. I want to squeeze until the blood flow stops, rip it off his body, but I don’t. My fingers meet Ella's warm mouth as she sucks him back, and that anger inside me grows.
Sawyer grabs my limp cock and releases a pleased moan. “I've dreamed of this, Tobias. Of me and you and her.” He pumps over me hard and fast, though I’m still not hard. “Come for me, Tobias.”
My gaze darts to his. I know the hate and rage must be evident, flashing in my eyes like a beacon in the night, but he's too blind to notice it. He thinks he's won, but he lost so long ago—Before Ella ever signed that contract. He loved her and he lusted after me. He's unhinged, mad with emotions, and never is a man weaker than when he's become a slave to his own heart. I should know. I am a willing slave for my little lamb, which is why I am here, but a shepherd can never lose his way.
“Do you want me to fuck you, Sawyer?” I ask.
“I want to fuck both of you.” He's so very weak for me and her, and that is a fatal flaw.
“I'm very particular.” I shove him away and pull Ella to her feet, but that damn gun remains aimed at her head. It’s too risky. Adrenaline fires through me. What I’m about to do will be nothing short of art. Seduction, manipulation, sacrifice...
My fingers glide over her bare back before I take the knife, hiding the small blade within my palm. “She really does have the prettiest pussy.” I use my free hand to unfasten the button of her jeans. “Strip.” I just need a tiny distraction.
Without hesitation, she does as told, dropping her jeans like a good little lamb. And like an even better little lamb, she strokes her hand over her bare pussy. She’s learned so well.
I fist my dick with one hand, keeping the blade hidden in the other as I circle behind him. “On your knees, if you want me to take that tight asshole.” I grab the back of his neck and shove him to the floor, but the gun remains clutched in his hand, haphazardly pointed at Ella. “How bad do you want me deep in your ass, Sawyer?” I ask as I kneel behind him.
“I'm desperate for it.” He motions Ella over with a jerk of the gun. “Sit in front of me and spread for me.”
Ella obeys and sits on the floor, spreading her legs wide to show her perfect pussy.
Even with the imminent danger and anger eating me from the inside out, the sight of my little lamb spread out like that has my dick hard enough to actually fuck Sawyer.
He lowers his mouth between her legs and swipes his tongue over her pussy. She moans in response, but I’ve made her come enough times to know that moan is nothing but a beautiful distraction.
I press my cock against his tight hole. No part of me wants Sawyer, but I do want to defile and ruin him so with one, violent thrust, I tear into his ass. He groans, deep and hard, losing enough focus that he lets go of the gun. Weak. He’s so very weak.
“Oh, don't be a pussy.” I grab his hair and yank his head back.
Ella's gaze locks with mine, so trusting, so loving—so very dark. In one swift movement, with my dick buried deep inside him, I swipe the blade over the front of his throat. A spray of blood drenches Ella, but she doesn't flinch. She simply kicks the gun away and watches the man who once hung her moon gurgle and gasps for air.
When I pull out of him, he rolls to his back. And Ella? She crawls toward him, her eyes flickering with the darkness that lives within the recesses of all mankind; the pitch black that I have stoked and kindled in my little lamb comes to life. I push to my feet, watching and waiting for that monster to claw its way out.
She holds out her palm, her gaze transfixed on Sawyer as I place the knife in her hand. “I hate you for what you've done,” she whispers, her voice calm like the woods during snowfall.
She grips the knife with both hands, raises it above her head, and plunges the blade deep into his chest. There she is, my little lamb, covered in blood and surrounded by calm. Oh, how far she's come.
“Little lamb.” Smiling, I kneel in front of her and wipe the blood spatter from her cheek. “What have you done?”
“What you taught me to do.”
She did, and she did it so very well. My little lamb is beautiful and awakened. And although she's barely holding on, I can’t help but revel in that spark that threatens to ignite and consume us both.
When she gets to her feet, I expect her to fall into my waiting arms, but she doesn’t. “You’ll make sure the money goes into my account? I didn't sell my soul for nothing.”
Oh, but little lamb you cannot leave the flock. Not now… Grabbing her wrist, I yank her naked body into mine. “And where do you think you're going?”
“I'm done. The game is over.” Tears swim in her eyes. Her lips tremble. Why Ella do you want to cry? Throughout the past seven days, I’ve seen her cry and beg and bargain, and it’s never bothered me. But these tears damn near destroy me because they are for me.
&nb
sp; “A little lamb can't leave her shepherd,” I say. “The Big Bad Wolf will surely get her.”
“The Big Bad Wolf is dead, Tobias.”
“That he may be, but I will haunt your every dream. You'll toss and turn with my name on your lips, Ella. You belong to me.”
She swallows, fixing her gaze on my chest. “Why do you do this? These games? What is the point?”
“Because I can.” It’s a simple enough answer. It’s the reason most people do the things they do—because they can. “It’s fascinating to see how many days it takes the human mind to change.” I take her chin and lift her gaze to mine. A moment of doubt dances through her eyes before I press a gentle kiss to her perfect, perfect lips. “It excites me to watch someone break free from the moral constructs of society. I taught you to do what most people wish they could. All that stops them is the preconceived, conditioned notion of right and wrong. Those are human constructs. They are not real. All they do is chain a person to some idea that should not exist.”
“Murder, Tobias—”
I hold up a finger. She still has much to learn. “Survival of the fittest. The superior. Those people you killed; they would have put a knife in your back the second you turned around. All of existence is a test. A game. A manipulation.”
She shakes her head. She’s confused, lost, and understandably so. It’s hard to first see when one arrives in the dark, but soon enough she’ll see the morbid beauty in everything. She’ll understand the gift she’s been given.
“Maria tested your desire for revenge,” I say. “The bridge determined your will to live. It was all a test, Ella. All part of the game to tell us whether you were truly superior or not. To test the bounds of love and loyalty—Greed. To make sure you were the perfect fit.”
Her brow creases, her gaze drifting to my lips. “Do you really love me? Or was that just part of the game?”
“I have never lied to you. Love, Ella, is the one thing we have no control over.”
“Would you love me if you hadn't turned me into this?” She waves a hand down her bloodied body.
“We'll never know, will we?”
She leans into me until our lips are barely an inch apart. “I should hate you,” she breathes.
I fist her hair and drag her to me. “What is love worth to you, Ella? It is the one thing we seek. The one thing we will kill for and steal for. It’s something we’ll die for. What is that worth to you?” I run my nose along her neck, inhaling the sweet scent of her skin mixed with Sawyer's blood. “Is it worth this? Is it worth your morality?”
Her hand glides over my chest until her fingers thread through my hair. She presses her cheek to mine. The tension builds as I wait for her to answer, and I realize that I'm far too invested in this, in her, but I'm also too far gone to turn back now.
“Yes,” she whispers. “It's worth everything.”
I kiss her hard and deep. Ruthlessly, just like I love her. It shouldn’t be possible to fall for someone in seven days, but we’ve been bonded in depravity, bound together in darkness. And dark things have a way of seeping into one’s soul in a way that stains deep and fast.
Just like our love. Deep and fast and beautifully dark.
33
I awaken with a jolt and I drag a stilted breath into my lungs as I push away the memories from yesterday— Sawyer’s wide, lifeless eyes. Blood. Tobias.
The soft early morning light outlines Tobias’s beautiful form, his eyes still closed as his fingers rub soothing circles over my skin. I barely remember coming home last night, and I wonder, is the game really over?
“Come here, little lamb,” he whispers, a bite of command in his voice.
I want to hate him for twisting me into this person, but I know it isn't him. It's me. No one could manipulate a person’s fundamental sense of self in seven days. The dark part of me wanted revenge, it enjoyed watching Sawyer die, it felt validation killing Reginald. That part must have always been somewhere deep within me just waiting to come out. Some lessons have been hard, but I understand now. I see. Tobias is my awakening within the darkness.
Preston comes out of the bathroom, slipping into bed behind me. These two men are my reality. They make me feel safe and wanted, cherished, and loved when I'm in their embrace. How is it possible to feel as though you physically need someone simply to exist in just seven days? Preston’s fingers whisper over my hip before landing on Tobias' stomach, intertwining with mine. This right here is bliss. I don't need morals. I don't need guilt. I just need them.
“Come, little lamb.” Tobias kisses me gently before he stands and scoops me into his arms. “I like it when people can see you. When they know that you’re mine,” he says, carrying me through the French doors and onto the patio. The warm sun hits my bare skin, and I glance over the railing at the bustling city streets below.
“I want them to hear you come for me, Ella.” Tobias turns his back to the city and places me on my feet, then trails a finger between my legs. “For us…”
My stomach flutters with excitement at the prospect of people watching. Movement to the side of the patio catches my attention as Preston slips through the open doorway, his cock already hard and ready as he moves behind me. “Yes, Sweet Ella, come for us. One last time.”
I barely have time to process what he means by that statement before Tobias fists Preston’s hair and yanks his face over my shoulder. Their mouths slam together, their tongues wrestling in a show of masculinity.
Moisture pools between my thighs, and I sink to my knees, gripping Tobias’s hips before I slide his cock between my lips.
“Fuck, your mouth...” Tobias groans.
The two of them continue to kiss above me as I work my mouth over Tobias, deep, hard, and slow. And just when I think he’s getting close to that edge, he forces my mouth away from his cock and tells me to get on all fours. “Now, suck his cock, little lamb. Make him come in your mouth.”
Car horns blare. Jackhammers echo up between the concrete sky rises as I do as I’m told. Preston gets on his knees in front of me, and I kiss the swollen head of his cock before I lap up the drop of pre-cum.
I feel Tobias shift behind me and grab my hips. “I'm going to fuck your wet pussy until you scream for me to stop.” And then he slams balls deep inside me with such force it shoves Preston's cock down my throat, and I gag.
“That's right, little lamb, choke on his cock.”
I shouldn’t enjoy this so much, but I do. I moan around Preston as Tobias drives into me. Pain and pleasure. Hate and love. Submission and domination. It all swirls thick in the air, suffocating me.
“Do you want to come in her mouth, or her pussy, Preston?” Tobias grunts, ramming in deep. I find myself silently begging for him to say my pussy. I want them both inside of me. Filling me, fucking me, owning me, out here for everyone to see.
Preston strokes a finger over my cheek. “What do you want, sweet Ella?”
“Both of you.”
I’m yanked to my feet. Preston’s back hits the wall and he lifts me, clamping my thighs around his hips as he lowers me onto his waiting cock. Hard and perfect.
“You get it so wet for me, Tobias,” he groans on a deep thrust.
“She’s always wet for us.” Tobias slides a finger over my asshole before he sinks inside. I love the way it feels to have him there, where no other man has ever been. It's dirty and wrong, but so very right with him—With them.
His finger plunges in and out in rhythm with Preston's cock. “Tell me you want me in your ass, Ella.”
“I want you to fuck my ass, Tobias.”
His cock replaces his finger, the pressure growing with each second as he forces his way inside. It’s the sweetest pain, forbidden and sensual. He groans when his entire cock finally slips in. “So fucking perfect.”
Preston's fingers dig into my hips, forcing me over him until both men are seated balls deep inside me. Their cocks fight for space, creating a blissful friction that can’t be matched.
&n
bsp; “Scream for us, little lamb.” Tobias nips at my ear.
“Come for us, sweet Ella.” Preston kisses my cheek.
It's too much. Tobias and Preston and the city below, the open air, the morning sun caressing my naked body...
“Look at all those people on the street Ella.” Tobias pants. “Scream for them so they know how good we feel inside you. Scream so they know you’re mine, little lamb.”
I glance over the railing at the cars and pedestrians littering the streets, and everything inside of me tightens and burns. I’m desperate for release. “I...I...” I can't catch my breath, “Tobias…”
Tobias’s pace picks up, his face smashes my cheek. “Louder.”
And they give me no choice. The fuck me so hard and ruthless I scream their names, the sound of my pleasure echoes from the surrounding buildings.
Both men groan and pant, and then they go rigid, burying themselves so deep inside of me I know I will never belong to anyone else. Tobias pulls out, leaving me wrapped around Preston’s waist. His lips whisper over my throat. I could stay with them like this forever. I can now. I won. Nothing can take them from me.
When Preston finally releases me, Tobias immediately grabs me and places me on the patio table. He sinks between my thighs and runs his tongue over my slit. “You taste so good in her, Preston,” he groans. After a few more swipes of his tongue, Tobias pushes to his feet and goes to Preston, cupping his cheek. “Taste how good we’ve been together…” He kisses him hard and deep. Their bodies press together as the kiss deepens and just as the tension grows into something palpable, Tobias breaks away. “We were so good.”
What is he talking about? Were?
Preston latches onto Tobias’s wrist, keeping it on his face. His eyes close and a silent exchange happens. Something filled with an emotion that scares me. When Preston finally releases Tobias’s arm, he steps toward me. “I knew you were perfect for Tobias.” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “But oh, how I'll miss you.”
