Sebastian shook his head, stood up, and walked to the railing, looking over and onto the dance floor.
Aleks followed, wanting an answer. As he rested his arms on the railing he found the three girls dancing together. Belle was radiant. He looked around at multiple men watching the group, waiting to make their entrance. His knuckles tightened around the rail knowing she was free game to whomever wanted her, and she would take any available opportunity. This is the stupidest bet I’ve ever made.
Sebastian turned, resting his side on the rail as he looked at him, bewildered. “You’re a lot of things, Aleks. Some good, some bad, but until tonight, I’d never thought to add dense to the list of words I’d use to describe you.”
Annoyed at Sebastian for not giving him an answer, he directed some of his fury outwards.
“What are you talking about?”
“I need to spell it out for you?” Sebastian sighed before continuing. “She’s insecure about where she stands with you; wants to know if she’s anything other than the flavor of the week.”
Aleks watched on as one of the men watching Belle moved in and grabbed her hand to spin her. They began dancing, Belle laughing as he twirled her. He was smooth — not making much bodily contact yet; drawing in her trust.
Aleks knew this game all too well: soon enough he would pull her closer against him, as he sweet talked his way into a kiss. Possibly more. His jaw tightened and he half-expected Belle to look up at him to bait him as she had done before.
“She’s insecure? You could have fooled me.” Somehow, the word didn’t seem to fit Belle.
“What woman wouldn’t be? Look at you. Seriously — right now — look at you. If Sirena talked to Belle about you, which we can both conclude definitely happened knowing Sirena, she wouldn’t lie about you. Belle would have been given a general idea of your past ‘relationships’,” he accentuated the last word with air quotes. “Yet, even with all of your … history, she looks at you like you hung the moon.” Rolling his eyes, he continued, “You must be blind not to see she’s got it bad for you. The question is, do you have it just as bad for her?”
Aleks thought Sebastian was misguided; she couldn’t be insecure. He took a swig of beer as he pondered where he would come to this conclusion.
He winced, recalling their fight; telling her he turned her down, and how she was desperate for him. He hadn’t realized then how much he had been projecting his need for her desperation. She baited him; he knew she was doing it. Yet when she told him she would never give into him, something snapped. He hurt. For the first time, he wanted a woman more than she wanted him. He used his anger against her.
Then, having to then hear from Sirena how his words during their fight affected her was even worse. She had cried over what he had done and said to her. He promised he would never hurt her, yet he had done just that. He tried to absolve himself of the guilt by remembering how he was trying to make up to her since then; until he remembered he recently ignored her for a week to get his own head straight. Right after she finally gave in and slept with him.
Sebastian’s right. She needed him to be jealous. She wanted acknowledgement that this thing between them was different; that she was different. That he wasn’t done with her after winning the challenge.
Instead, I flat out told her I couldn’t care less and turned the bet on her. The recognition of how badly he screwed up, again, made him sick to his stomach.
The man who was dancing with her before was now pressed up against her, holding onto her ass; as he watched the man’s fingers linger just under the fabric, he shook with fury. I’ll show her just how much I want her.
Dropping his beer off on the table, he headed to where she was on the dance floor. Passing by the steps, he heard Sebastian mutter, “Mystery solved.”
Belle gave herself over to the beat. The champagne in the car and following two shots had worked their magic, and she danced, free of inhibitions. She swayed to the music, dancing with her hips and ass shaking, and her breasts bouncing. She hadn’t danced since — since the club with Aleks. When another man touched his “thing”, she reminded herself, angry at his indifference.
While dancing with the girls, a handsome man dressed as a nurse came up to her. He said hello and offered his hand. Either way, I’m dancing with a man or two tonight, might as well start.
He twirled her around as he smiled at her, making her laugh. Sirena and Cynthia backed away, allowing her space to dance alone. He smelt good, musky, and she thought she recognized the cologne as a popular brand from her high school days.
As he wrapped one arm around her waist, he still held onto her hand, pulling her in close and singing words to the song in her ear. Half of his hand landed on the top of her shorts, testing the waters. Making the decision to continue on with her goal, she didn’t stop him.
Suddenly, she was pulled away by her giggling friends. Sirena apologized and kissed the man on the cheek as she pulled Belle closer to shout into her ear. “Run!”
Belle looked at her friend as if she were crazy, until she saw Aleks walking towards them, eyes never leaving hers. His lips were set in a firm line, jaw clenched.
“I’ll hold him off for a second or two. This chase is going to end very well for you, I think.” Sirena pushed Belle into the crowd away from Aleks.
The look on Aleks’ face — determined, angered, and lascivious — sent a nervous thrill through her. She scooted between and around bodies as she made her way towards the side of the dance floor.
Wait. Maybe he’s coming down to tell me he’s ready to play. The thought discouraged her and she paused near the center of the dance floor and watched him through the crowd.
A woman dressed as a Greek goddess walked up behind him, raking her eyes over Aleks’ god-like physique. The woman placed her hands on his stomach as she circled towards his front. Aleks tilted his head and removed her hands from his waist. Belle watched, elated as he shook his head “no”, turning her down.
Belle felt the smile stretch across her face. When his eyes found hers again, they stood still for a moment and the rest of the room faded away. In a few quick strides, he was beside her. He pulled her body into his, his mouth crashing against hers as he possessed her lips.
Swaying to the music, their bodies rubbed against each other in rhythm as they devoured each other. Her nails dug into his back, allowing every other woman there know he was with her.
Breaking the kiss, he growled into her ear. “You win. I can’t stand the idea of you with another man. I wanted to break his neck. I want to bend you over right here, fuck you right in front of him, to show him you’re with me.”
His words made her heart leap and her pussy clench; his admission, proof he felt something more intense for her than just fun in the bedroom. She pulled back as she replied, “Come with me.”
She took his hand and walked towards the backstage entrance. Keying in the code, she led him into the corridor leading to the dressing area. They could still hear the music, albeit somewhat muffled. As soon as the door shut behind them, Aleks pushed her back against the wall, roughly kissing her. Their teeth knocked as his tongue thrust into her mouth, foreshadowing what was to come.
He took both her hands in one of his, pulling them above her head. With the other, he lowered the zipper to her pants. He turned her around to face the wall as he pulled back her hips and lowered the material down her legs, keeping them at her ankles. Opening her legs as wide as the shorts would allow, he stood behind her as he pulled himself from his costume.
“I’ll admit, I’m not very happy with this bet. I don’t like the idea of you wanting to flirt with other men.”
“I didn’t want—”
Her voice faltered as his teeth grazed her shoulder. Grabbing her hands, he pushed them against the wall, positioning her as if in police custody. He rubbed her bare cheeks, his thumbs grazing down towards her center.
“Be a good girl and stick it out for me,” he rasped.
Teasing, sh
e replied, “Who said I was a good girl?”
Refusing to listen, she tried to wiggle away. He held her hip with one hand, keeping her still as he answered with a smack to her ass, stinging against her skin. A second smack came a second later. To her surprise, the motion made her even wetter.
“You belong to me, Belle. You’ll be whatever type of girl I tell you to be.” He pulled her hips towards him, forcing her to arch her ass out. He smacked again, eliciting a moan from her, before rubbing away the pain with his palm.
“Admit it. Tell me you’re mine.” His voice, low and deep, dripped with authority. Goosebumps littered her skin as she shook with excitement at his words. For the first time, she wanted this possessiveness, craved it.
“Am I?” she answered honestly. He growled in response, smacking her ass again, harder, as her desire increased.
He rubbed his cock over the crease in her ass as he continued, “You are mine, Belle. Every kiss, every whimper, every orgasm, belongs to me alone. Tell me. Tell me you don’t want anyone but me.”
She couldn’t think, couldn’t speak from the desire coursing through her. His words; possessive, commanding, passionate, had her slickening with desire. The barbarity of his actions — the biting, smacking, the mine — she had never before wanted a man to treat her this way, yet she found herself helpless against it. She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling the sensations building. Her fingers clawed against the wall.
He smacked her again, causing her to moan aloud. He commanded again, voice strained, “Tell me who you belong to.”
“No more teasing,” she begged, unsure if she should admit what she felt.
“Tell me. Say the words.” He smacked her again, her pussy now dripping as he dipped the tip of his cock against her opening, just out of her reach. He reached into her corset, pulling her breasts out over the top to grasp her nipples, pinching them between his fingers. He scratched down her sides, pulled her thighs apart as he rubbed his ballooned head against her harder.
“Fucking say it.” As commanding as he sounded, there was a desperation in his voice as well. His motions, his words, her sensations. She was losing herself to him — and enjoying it. Wanting more than anything to be his, against her better judgment, she surrendered.
“You,” she breathed.
“Me what?”
“You! I belong to you!”
With one swift thrust, he entered her to the hilt. She screamed out at the intrusion as he pulled her further back to take her from behind. He thrust fast and deep, not giving her a moment to adjust. It felt … possessive. He smacked her ass again, causing her to gasp at the pain.
He grabbed both of her hips, fingers digging in, as if he couldn’t hold her tight enough. His hand glided down one thigh, lifted her leg out of her shorts, and wrapped it around the back of his, opening her up wider. As he thrust in again, his cock hit her g-spot perfectly, and she quivered at the onslaught.
He held onto her thigh, helping her keep the position, and moved the other hand into her hair, pulling her neck back. She was completely at his mercy and loving it. He fucked her harder still, and she didn’t know how she was going to keep herself standing.
“Remember this, Belle,” he breathed between thrusts, his voice deep and rough, “Remember who fucks you like this. Who makes you come. Remember who you belong to, who owns you.”
Her mind screamed at her to be angry. She was not a thing to be possessed, but the intensity of him inside of her, the seriousness of his voice, the words he was saying to her, destroyed any resolve she had to resist him. She was already riding the edge.
“Say my name, beautiful,” he grunted into her.
Helpless not to comply, she moaned, “Aleksandr.”
“Scream my name when you come. Let everyone know who’s responsible for your pleasure.”
His dominance overwhelmed her. Keeping his forearm on her thigh, he moved his fingers towards her opening to gather her juices before finding and rubbing against her clit. He pushed against her engorged nub hard, his fingers vibrating against her.
“I alone know how to fuck this pussy properly. Your sweet cunt begs for my cock, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, yes!”
His balls smacked against her ass with each punishing thrust. Her eyes squeezed shut. Bright white flashes pulsed behind her lids with every thrust. The burning pleasure continued building as her core tightened. He kept his relentless pace, his deft fingers moving against her as he held her hostage to his onslaught.
He bent forward, grunting into her ear, “Fuck, Belle.”
She screamed loudly as the waves of her orgasm hit her. “Aleksandr! Oh, God, Aleksandr!” Her muscles clenched and released, pulling him impossibly further into her.
“Love my name on your lips.” He bowed backwards, thrusting through her orgasm, prolonging it, before yelling out at his own release. He ground into her, coating her insides as he grunted with each stream shooting from him.
They stilled and he remained inside of her, grasping her hips as they caught their breath. She rested her head on her forearm as sweat pricked her back and thighs. He bent forward, kissing up her spine, sliding her thigh down his to the floor and pulling out of her before turning her to face him.
Weak, she fell back against the wall, breasts rising with each inhalation. His arms caged her in, one on each side of her head as he regained his own composure. His forehead met hers as they shared breaths for a few moments.
Knowing they eventually needed to return to their friends, Belle groaned. Opening her eyes, she looked around, frowning before speaking. “There’s nothing back here to clean up with.”
He picked up his head as a look of pure pride lit his face.
“Good. Let my cum run down your legs so everyone knows you’re mine.”
He kissed her passionately, pushing her back against the wall. He proved he owned her mouth with his kiss, just as he owned her body. After a few moments, he softened as he pulled her into him ending with a soft, simple, kiss on her lips.
“Okay, as hot as that would be, I’d feel bad.” He laughed, “Come on, I’ll walk us to the bathrooms.” He smiled at her, as the corners of his eyes crinkled, his demeanor changed. Belle loved how she was privy to both sides of him — the dominant, aggressive side needing to own her and the passionate, tender side taking care of her.
They readjusted themselves as much as they could and she felt as if she was floating as they walked out the door and into the crowd. Anyone who saw them walk out the door knew what they had done, yet she was too high from this recent revelation to care.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
A month passed by in a blur.
Aleks and Belle settled into something akin to a relationship. They had sex, amazing sex, in every possible position, daily at a minimum. Free time was spent wrapped around each other, learning more about the other’s body and mind.
He showed her around the city, took her to musicals, museums, anywhere she had not been before. The amazement written on her face as she saw the city lights from the Empire State Building would be etched in his mind forever; her delight in feeding the ducks at Central Park as well.
They spent Thanksgiving together. Her father came to the castle to celebrate with them. Pierre and Mrs. Adelle, the head housekeeper, seemed to hit it off, and disappeared together for most of the night. The next day, Belle and her father helped the staff begin to decorate for Christmas — at Belle’s request.
He was becoming domesticated, and for the life of him, Aleks couldn’t figure out why it didn’t bother him.
He still wouldn’t allow her to return to work, however. She requested it almost daily, yet he placated her by turning one of the unused bedrooms into her own home office. He had her working on various legal issues, mostly cases of negligent and fraudulent misrepresentation by clients which his own lawyers struggled to arbitrate. It kept her busy and provided him a sense of pride when she discovered details in one particular case which allowed his lawyers to decide
to file a suit.
He sat in his office, staring out the office window, thinking only of Belle, as he did most days now. Her laugh, her eyes, her skin, yet most surprisingly, her mind. Everything about her enticed him. With her, he was happy.
Sirena knocked as she walked in. “The guys from The Lumière are here. They’re going to choose you to sell the penthouse. I can tell.”
The Lumière Penthouse was the most expensive private listing in the city, with all agencies vying to be the listing agent. He was confident and didn’t have the desire or energy to pretend otherwise. He hadn’t wanted to bother with this meeting; with any meeting for the past few weeks. He just wanted to be home with her.
Lost in his thoughts he remained staring out the window. “Yup,” he agreed, acknowledging he’d heard Sirena.
She sighed, loudly. “Have her come back to work already.”
“You know why I don’t want her here.” The sadness was evident in his voice.
He hated lying to her. He refused to admit the truth to her as to why he kept her away: Gabriel. Over the past few weeks, he’d called the office a number of times, threatening to find Belle. He had made his way up to Sirena once; luckily while she was with a number of the other lawyers. It seemed he always knew when Aleks wouldn’t be at the office. Since his appearance, Aleks never allowed Sirena to be at the office alone.
That was almost two weeks ago and he hadn’t been back since. While he was confident he could protect her, he wasn’t about to take an unnecessary risk. It was safer if Belle stayed home.
“Except you do want her here. When you’re not leaving on lunch or early to go home to her, you’re staring out your window, thinking of her.”
He wasn’t surprised she could tell. She knew him almost better than he knew himself. He took a deep breath and turned towards her, noting the massive smile on her face. “What?” he asked, her expression telling him she had a secret.
“It’s about time you fell in love.”
The comment hit him like a punch. He swallowed the ball of fear that formed in his throat. “I’m not in love.” Even he didn’t believe him.
Stealing Beauty (Fairy Tales After Dark Book 1) Page 25
