"You like to show your slaves who's boss on day one, then?" My eyes glanced at the door behind me, once again considering my options. Somewhere in the sensible part of my brain, alarm signals were blaring out all kinds of warnings.
The eyes that had been so dark just seconds before had now lit up to an amber-coloured brown, and appeared alive with excitement. Surprisingly, it didn't take me long to connect the dots.
“This was the plan all along, wasn’t it? Get that lot to scare the crap out of me, and then you can have your fun.” If possible, Adie’s smile grew wider.
"Another point for you, Thirty-Eight. Well done. Now shut the fuck up, and get your ass over here." Adie had sat back down on the bed, and the cuffs were once again in his hands.
Crawling towards him, I tried my best not to admire the wonderful set of bronzed abs before me, but the battle was lost almost before it began. My eyes were suddenly glued there, and I took my fill of male perfection.
“Give me your hands.” He’d switched from the English accent, back to Spanish, and the sexy drawl suited him. I obeyed him without thinking. Placing his hands around mine, he pulled me to him. The logical part of my brain screamed that I was far too close and I needed to back away immediately. Every single other part of me screamed exactly the opposite.
“You can tell a lot about a person by their hands.” My eyes, both of which had been held hostage by his gaze, were now released, and they blinked their thanks. Giving Adie a quizzical glance, I waited to see where this was going. If he wanted to delay the torture side of things for a bit - I was all for it. I just hoped he couldn’t read palms very accurately. If he guessed I murdered people for a living, things were going to get awkward.
“Do you mind?” He lifted up my hand as if seeking my permission to examine it. This floored me. I’d pinned him as someone who took without asking, regularly, and without a whisper of conscience.
"I'm the slave. I don't get to mind." There was a frog stuck in my throat, and his back legs were doing a number on my vocal chords. Seriously. I could barely speak with this man so close to me.
"Ah good. You do know your place. I was beginning to wonder." Turning my hands over, so my palms rested in his, I felt a tremor ripple through me as I waited for his forthcoming assessment of my abilities.
Turning my hands this way and that, as if unhappy with what he’d seen, Adie finally remarked, “Not as soft as I expected.” He frowned.
“My bad? Perhaps I should use more moisturiser.” My frivolous comment did not seem to please him.
“What did you do for your previous master?”
“I obeyed his every word and command.” As I was going to get punished regardless, I figured I might as well play with the guy.
“Somehow I very much doubt that. To the contrary, I suspect he had an awful lot of trouble with you, which is why you’ve ended up here.” Adie gave me a knowing look, but if he thought I would reveal anything by my expression, he was much mistaken. His eyes narrowed.
“What sort of chores were you assigned?”
“Besides fucking or sucking him silly?” If my voice was slightly sarcastic, that was his problem.
“Be careful, Thirty-Eight. I’m the one whose shortly about to punish you. You’d be an idiot to antagonise me, but I also appreciate you don’t know that – yet. If you thought Henry was bad, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
"I like pain," I whispered breathily, and unless I was much mistaken, I would like anything this man did to me. He made me cream my pants just looking at him.
“You think you like pain. You haven’t been introduced to my kind of pain, yet. The two are quite separate. Now answer the question, or I’ll start my session a little earlier than anticipated – which means you’ll suffer more. Your choice.”
Adie’s eyes sparkled with vicious intent. He’d said he was worse than Henry, and I believed him. He was dangerous to me on so many levels, I barely knew where to start. Why the hell was I goading him?
“Domestic chores. Scrubbing floors, mopping, dusting, polishing, and preparing food – that kind of thing. Oh, and washing up, which really bugged me as the guy had a dishwasher.” The alcohol made me embellish my story more than I would have liked. So much for my vow of keeping quiet.
“So you’re used to hard work. That’s good. Did he have you run errands?”
“No.” That was much better. I needed to stick to my plan of giving as little away as possible.
“He kept you inside the house the whole time?” Adie seemed puzzled by this. I had no idea why.
“Isn’t that what you’re going to do with me?" He tilted his head as if he were considering my response. His thumbs then grazed the pad of my palms, and I felt my ovaries bleat in great eagerness to spread this man's seed. I gave them a stern talking to.
"Maybe yes, maybe no. You've yet to prove yourself. If you're dull, uninteresting and cry a lot, you'll spend most of your life in the bar, spreading your lips or legs. That's if you can behave yourself. If you can't, you'll be a frequent feature of the dungeon above – which is where all the fun stuff happens. If one of the patrons here takes a shine to you, it's possible you'll accompany them to outside functions from time to time – providing you've proved yourself trustworthy, of course." Silence met his statement. I was desperate to ask all manner of questions, but also conscious that while my head was swimming with drink, it would be prudent to keep quiet.
Adie’s grip on my hands tightened when he got bored of my lack of response. “Your hands aren’t as delicate as I imagined, either. For a face as beautiful as yours, I’d have expected tiny fingers and long, elegant nails.”
“All of your expectations have been dashed. Oh no. I must be a great disappointment to you.” I frowned cheekily and waggled my fingers against his skin. He then thrust his face within millimetres of mine, so close our lips were almost touching, and I had reason to regret my actions when my body lit up like a department store window.
“Not at all, Thirty-Eight. There’s a chance you might be more interesting than you look. It’s a slim one, but it’s one I’m prepared to take.” I glared at him as he pulled his head away from mine. I wasn’t sure if it was because he’d just insulted me, or if I was disappointed that he hadn’t moved in to kiss me – or worse – a combination of both. I almost wished I were back with Henry, even if he did have a bottle of vodka and a naked flame.
“I doubt it,” I replied acerbically. I already knew this bloke would have women constantly clamouring for his attention, and I didn’t intend to be one of them.
"So, what's Adie short for and do you come here often?" If he wanted dull, I could give him dull. My claws were now fully extended, and I intended to use them, until he handcuffed them, anyway.
“None of your business. Besides, we never talk about me. It’s one of my rules.”
“Good lord,” I said, thinking that he’d be most girls dream man. There’d be no rattling on about footie and no boring work talk. Hooray. Well, bar the sexual deviant and probable pervert tag, anyway.
“Well, you’re going to have a wonderful evening hearing me talk about shoes and the latest episode of Love Island. You’re such a lucky guy.” I batted my eyes for good measure and stared at the cuffs, hard. “We’re wasting time here. If you want to hear me scream you’re gonna need to put some effort in here.”
Adie rocked back on the bed and grinned. "You're one ballsy bitch, you know that?" A cold steel band was placed around my right wrist, and there was a sharp click as the ratchet locked.
“You have no idea,” I replied.
Chapter Fifteen
After Adie had handcuffed me, there was a knock at the door. He frowned but got up to answer it. Thankfully, it broke the spell I was under for a minute, and blinking, I looked down at my two captured hands and wondered what the hell was going to happen next. Nothing good, that was for sure. Henry might have been mad, but Adie was in another category entirely – completely fucking insane. If my session at the auction
had been anything to go by, the next hour or two was going to rock my world. What I needed to figure out was how to get the asshole off as quick as possible and then wriggle my way out of this mess with the least amount of damage to my person. At the moment, I knew virtually nothing about most of the men here, but with time I would pick up a few things. Those things would hopefully make my life easier and enable me to get through my six-month stint.
When Adie came back, he had a bottle of Dom Perignon in his hand and two glasses. Oh no. My face dropped.
"What's up with you? Don't you like champagne?" Setting the bottle down on the bedside table, he unpeeled the foil and popped the cork. The sound rang loudly in my ears. Then there was the gentle glug of fizzy wine, and before I knew what was happening, a glass was in my hand, and I was being ordered to drink it.
“But I don’t want it,” I whimpered, looking at the glass in horror.
"Did I ask whether you wanted it or not?" He gave me a ruthless smile, and I was transported back to room thirty-eight in the auction house. This wasn't a man I wanted to disobey, so I took a sip. It tasted divine. It was also going to go straight to my head.
“Surely champagne this good shouldn’t be wasted on a slave?” I whispered.
“Drain it.” Adie gave me a hard look, suggesting I shouldn’t push him any further. I ignored it.
“What will you do if I don’t?”
“Drink it all up, or you’re about to find out, Thirty-Eight.” His eyes were dark, but the excited gleam still remained. It was almost as if he wanted me to say no, and who was I to disappoint the damn man?
“No. I don’t like the taste of alcohol,” I said, lying through my teeth.
Grabbing a handful of my hair, Adie yanked my head back, almost parallel to the ceiling, and towered above me. “Oh, Thirty-Eight. We’re going to have so much fun together, you and I.” He then spat out a mouthful of champagne all over me. As I was recovering from the shock of that, he yanked my body off the bed and sent me sprawling on the floor. Trying hard to break my fall with my cuffed hands, I failed miserably, lumping my chin against the floor. Thank God it was covered in carpet. Memo to me, be careful around this man and do what he tells you.
“Follow me, Thirty-Eight, and it had better be on your hands and knees unless you want the mother of all hangovers tomorrow.” I did as I was told. He strode out of the room briskly, the bottle of champagne swinging by his side, and he hummed as he walked. Looking up at him, I realised he hadn’t put his shirt back on, so either he wasn’t bothered by his attire, or we were going somewhere nobody cared.
By the time Adie had stopped, I must have crawled around a mile, and gone up a flight of stairs – and let me tell you, that was not fun. It was alright for him, the man had long legs and was standing upright – but it nearly crippled me.
“Bit less chatty now, aren’t we?” Adie looked down at me and grinned. Plucking a key card out of his trouser pocket, he waved it at a panel beside the black door in front of us. With a loud click, it opened inwards, and we were once again on the move. I already knew where we were. You didn’t have to be a genius to figure I was on my way up to the dungeon – the very same one that resided above the bedroom we had just been in. Sure enough, as soon as I crawled in, a clear Perspex floor greeted me, along with lots of leather and steel. Thankfully, there was no one else around at the moment to witness my humiliation, but I suspected that could easily change.
“What are you going to do to me?” Although I knew the question would not have an answer, it didn’t stop me asking it.
“Shut up. Sit down with your feet tucked beneath your ass and look up. I’ll be back shortly.” He strode off without giving me so much as a glance, confident that I would do exactly as he said. To be fair, I didn’t really have another option. I was pretty damn sure the door was now locked, and unless there was an exit I was unaware of, there was nowhere left to run. Yes, I could have done a few laps around the room, but judging by Adie’s physique, there was no way I’d win that contest – although it might be fun for a few minutes. Grumbling under my breath, I did as he instructed and waited to see what the night would bring. At least it gave me time to get my breath back. I figured that right now, I should be trembling in my non-existent boots, but a strange calm had settled over me. Whatever he threw at me, I would get through it.
When Adie came back, whatever he’d been searching for was small because I couldn’t see it.
“Nervous?” Tipping a finger under my chin, he raised my head even higher, until the tendons in my neck were under strain.
“A little,” I replied. Now that he was back in the room, the calm aura around me had vanished, and, shockingly, excitement had settled in its place. What the hell was wrong with me?
"Good. You should be." Bringing the champagne bottle up to his lips, Adie took a long swig of the stuff, and when he'd finished, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and whistled. "Oh, the things I want to do to you, Thirty-Eight. You'd better buckle your seatbelt because I'm going to spin that little head of yours upside down and inside out."
Reaching inside his pocket, Adie brought out two strips of metal chain, both of which featured silicone-coated nipple clamps. In the middle of this, there was an ‘O' shaped piece of silicone in between two strips of leather. Fuck. Panic already began to swirl through me. I'd barely been here two seconds, and already the bastards wanted to gag me. Breathe. James had spent a lot of time working through my fear of being gagged in our week together, but there hadn't been the intense weight of pressure upon me that I was feeling now. With James, I had a safe word, and a get out clause. With Adie, I would have nothing. I already knew that tears wouldn't sway him, and judging by the soulless void of his chocolate brown eyes, nothing else would, either. Breathe, breathe, breathe.
“Do you know what this is?” Adie used his index finger to draw a ring inside the black circle of silicone in front of me, so I knew what he was talking about.
“Yes,” I whispered, in a small little voice that did not sound like my own. “It’s an O-ring gag.” My answer would be shorter than the one he wanted, but I needed a few all-important seconds to get my head around things.
“Ah, so that master of yours has at least taught you something. That’s good.” He patted my head. “My second question to you, is what do you think I’m going to do with it?”
And there was the question I’d been dreading. Still, if he was having fun with me, I didn’t see why I couldn’t have some of my own.
“At a guess, I’d say you were going to gag me and force-feed me champagne.” There was a wry twist to Adie’s lips as he brought the large, silicone ‘O’ down towards my mouth.
“Well, you’re about to find out, Thirty-Eight. Open wide.”
Adie was surprisingly gentle as he placed the ring behind my teeth. He then made short work of buckling the thing tight behind my head. The whole time he was working, his eyes were on mine. I tried my best to control the panic running through me, but all of this was completely new to me, and it would take some time to adjust.
“Look at those big grey eyes, Thirty-Eight. Anyone would think I was the big bad wolf, here to eat you all up.” His fingertips curved around the line of my throat and paused for a minute. Two fingers then pressed at my vein, and I knew exactly what he was looking for. “Ah, yes. That pulse is fluttering wildly. Not quite as badass as you’d like people to believe, huh?” My eyes replied with, ‘Oh if you only knew what I did for a day job, you wouldn’t be quite so smug right now.’ I could kill the man in less than ten seconds flat, even with my hands cuffed in front of me.
Adie frowned at me, and I wondered, for one crazy moment, if he had read my mind. “I must confess, Thirty-Eight, that you’re an enigma to me. That’s probably the only reason you’re here. Once I figure you out, I’m sure you’ll bore me, just like all the rest.” Oh, good grief. Please don’t tell me I have to endure six months of this drivel. Get on with it, man.
He gently took hold of the first
clamp, from where it rested in the centre of my chest and drew a leisurely line with it until he reached my left nipple. There, he teased my bud with little flicks and caresses until it was standing proudly to attention. To be fair, all he had to do was stand close to me, but he seemed determined to do the job properly, and who was I to complain? My clit was throbbing happily between my legs and all the anxiety I'd had about wearing the gag had fled in a heartbeat.
All good things come to an end, however. With a sharp pinch of his index finger and thumb, he gave my nipple a cruel squeeze that had me jumping up from my kneeling position and spluttering out my woes. Adie simply pushed my head straight back down again.
“Sit.” He then waved the clamp in front of my nose. “Ready for this?” I shook my head, no. “Too bad.” Moving in close to my ear, his stubble brushed roughly against my cheek as he said, “There is nothing more profound than the face of true beauty when immersed in pain. Don’t you agree?” I didn’t.
The clamp then bit down with a vicious bite that I wasn’t prepared for. Sucking in a great gulp of air, I made a stuttering sound with my throat as my nipple began to take the strain. This seemed to please him.
Adie then pulled away from me, examining his work with a careful eye. It seemed to be acceptable because he then went to work on the other one. The man might as well have been fondling my clit because I’d just hit explosive mode.
"I've got to discuss the details of your contract tomorrow, Thirty-Eight. Your handler seems pretty keen on a six-month stint, and normally I'd be fine with that, but now that you're here, under my thumb, so to speak, I'm not so sure. There's just this feeling I have that it will take more than a few months for me to get you out of my system, and I don't say that very often. The last girl was a Brazilian Miss World, but even she proved boring in the end. Mind you, she could deep-throat like a fucking animal. The trouble is, Thirty-Eight, that all you women are just too easy to master. You just have to know which buttons to press. As soon as I've discovered those, it's pretty much plain sailing – and the wind always blows in my direction. You feel me?" I felt him alright.
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