Her eyes widened apprehensively, and he had to force back a laugh.
“Seriously, though,” she said quickly, as though he was joking. She traced his brow with the tip of her finger. He forced down a shudder of disgust, reminding himself that he usually liked her doing this. “What’s going on behind that sexy scowl of yours?”
He hadn’t realized he was frowning, but now he felt the tension there, as though he’d been doing it for a while.
Cut to the chase, Leduc.
“If you decide you prefer him, I want you to tell me immediately.”
“What?” Her brows rose and she looked confused. “Him who? Loïc?”
“Yes, Loïc.”
“Oh my god, Mister Leduc. He’s a baby!”
“He’s older than you.”
“Not my type.”
“Oh, but I am?”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re not anyone’s type. You’re not a type, you’re a force of nature.”
He gritted his teeth. “He flirts with you. He wants to dominate you.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, I have my plate full with you, then you add Rodrigo to the mix, and I’m far too sore and satisfied to be scouting for new talent. Besides, you own me, remember?” She tapped the metal collar locked around her delicate neck. The words he’d stamped into it – Property of Severin Leduc – filled him with satisfaction every time he saw them.
He thumbed the collar then gave it a tug to reassure himself. The small gesture made Minnow’s gaze go soft and submissive.
“And I’m in love with you. That’s probably the most important part.”
“But he’s – me with better manners.”
“He’s not you with better manners. You’re completely different. If he was the kind of man I wanted, I never would have accepted your collar.”
He bared his teeth at her in what wasn’t meant to be a smile. “Like I gave you a choice?”
She butted her head against his chest. “Then don’t push me at him and don’t let me leave. Are you going to be a coward and let me go just because your baby brother showed up on your doorstep?”
He narrowed his gaze at her and she paled.
“I’m sorry, Mister Leduc. I took that too far.”
“Yes. Yes, you did.” He scooped her up and threw her on the bed, where she bounced and skidded to a stop.
The girl scrambled to kneel, her body curled in on itself in submissive contriteness.
“On your back. Pull your knees apart and hold them there.”
She did as he’d bidden, opening the most sensitive parts of her body to his perusal. He could tell she wanted to ask what he planned to do, but she bit her lip instead, watching him with apprehension. As he unbuckled his belt and pulled it free from his belt loops she whimpered, and the sound ricocheted through his body and thickening his cock.
“Please, Mister Leduc,” she begged, “I’m sorry.” She could protest all she wanted, but her pussy was already glistening with arousal.
He wrapped the buckle end of the belt around his hand. “Let’s make sure you are.”
Her whimper of fear and anticipation got him hard. Even for a little masochist, she liked his belt far too much, but then hurting her like this was fucking blissful.
The first blow of the belt hit the inside of her thigh, exactly on target. She gasped, but he had put minimal force behind it. He set a pattern, one thigh then the other, gradually harder until she was grunting and crying out under her breath. He paused to move her hands behind her head, then resumed, turning the insides of both of her thighs bright pink.
He shifted his stance and hit her pubic bone, lighter than her thighs. Harder then, moving, drinking in her cries of distress, then pain. Her hips shot off the bed once, and it took two more blows before he hit just the right angle again. She gurgled an inhuman wail, heels forcing her hips off the bed, and she writhed there for a moment, suspended in the moment of ruined orgasm when his next blow didn’t come.
“Mister Leduc!” she cried, but didn’t elaborate.
Tears glittered in her eyes, and her face was red and blotched. She sobbed, and he threw down the belt, even though he wanted nothing more than to keep going. His aggression screamed for him to harm her, but there was a line where he had to find his internal restraint and exercise it. If he let himself lose control with someone so precious to him it would be unforgivable. It was enough that she trusted him to hurt her at all.
He got onto the bed and hauled her up beside him, planning to cuddle her until she calmed down, but she was still crying.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
She hadn’t done anything horrible, but she was always ready to take responsibility for all of the world’s problems after spending time reflecting under his belt.
Her pain was too good, though, too delicious. After the day they’d had, he needed to discharge the rest of his nervous energy. She was always perfect for that. He rolled her to her belly and pinned her in place. She squirmed and begged, spreading her legs, lifting her ass. He thrust his throbbing cock into her abused pussy, finding her hot and wet and ready, as only violence and rough handling could accomplish.
When he’d used her to his satisfaction, she dozed. He curled around her, keeping watch.
*
The two of them were laughing again.
The sound of it grated on Severin’s nerves.
Minnow and Rodrigo laughing together sounded good – it made him leery sometimes, but he was ultimately happy that two of the people he cared about most enjoyed each other’s company. Rodrigo chumming around with Loïc, however, was making him crazy.
He didn’t fucking like it.
Trying to tune them out, he focused on his sit-ups and deliberately did not watch Loïc spotting Rodrigo as he bench pressed, muscles straining, bare feet digging into the grass and calves flexing with each push. He looked so much less civilized in only shorts and with tattoos bared.
“Your turn,” Rodrigo finally said.
“No, I’m done. You two are too advanced for me.” Loïc wiped his face with a towel. “I’m going to go cry in the shower then take a nap.”
“Pussy,” Rodrigo mocked amiably.
“Meow,” Loïc acknowledged, then smirked and set off toward the house.
Severin grabbed his Gatorade and took a swig, watching his brother’s retreating back with narrowed eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Rodrigo asked when Loïc was far enough away not to hear.
“Nothing.”
“He’s coming along. He’ll be able to keep up with us in a few months.”
A few months? Fuck. Was he planning to stay that long?
“I’m sure he’ll be gone before that,” Severin replied guardedly.
“I think he’ll stay as long as you let him.”
He didn’t say his brother was already getting on his last nerve.
“Sev, he’s just a kid.”
“He’s a grown man. He’s older than Minnow.”
“He’s alone in the world.”
Rodrigo put his hand on Severin’s shoulder, and Sev knocked it away, ignoring the flash of hurt in his friend’s eyes.
“He’s annoying.”
Rodrigo snorted, his dark eyes glittering with amusement. “You think everyone is annoying.”
“This is different.”
“Sev, he’s part of your family.”
“That doesn’t mean I want to hang out with him. It doesn’t mean I want him living in my goddamned house.”
The breeze kicked up, drying the sweat in his hair and on his skin. Rodrigo’s tattoos gleamed in the sun. His body was a sculpted, masculine work of art, and Severin forced himself not to admire him.
Rodrigo shoved his shoulder, chuckling. “You’d just love that wouldn’t you? For all of us to get out of your hair and leave you alone.”
Severin shoved him back irritably.
“What? Not going to deny it?” Rodrigo came at him again, bumping chests with him, mock menacing. Not qu
ite as tall as Severin, Ro had a lower center of gravity. Severin actually had to fall back a step before adjusting his stance.
“I have no problem with you and Minnow being here.” He pushed Rodrigo back with his chest, their sweat-slicked skin sliding together. He had a brief flash of the way Rodrigo’s body felt when they accidentally slid together when they shared Minnow. He forced the thought away, but not before his body started to respond.
“Aww. I knew you felt all warm and fuzzy about me, you big bastard.” He lunged upward and tried to get Severin in a headlock, but he ducked just in time, dropping to a crouch and sweeping Rodrigo’s feet with a leg. Rodrigo hit the lawn hard, a whoosh of air escaping his lungs, and he had no time to react before Severin was on him. He flipped him onto his stomach. Rodrigo struggled, and they wrestled around on the ground, having trouble getting a good hold on each other as sweat dripped in the hot afternoon sun.
Gasping for breath, Rodrigo stopped fighting. Severin had basically rolled him into a ball and had him pinned, holding his wrists wrenched up high behind his back, forehead pressed to the grass. As soon as Ro stopped fighting, having his crotch pressed against his ass seemed less like innocent sparring.
He let go of Rodrigo as if he’d caught fire, hoping his erection went away before it was noticed.
Laughing, Rodrigo rolled onto his side, and propped his head on his hand, flashing Severin a dazzling smile. “It’s good you know enough to quit when you’ve been beaten.”
Severin forced a smile and made sure not to edge away even though he wanted to put more distance between them. It was hard to find a sitting position that seemed casual that also disguised his idiot boner. Sharing Minnow with Rodrigo all the time was making Severin associate him with sex too much.
“Oh, you think you beat me?” Severin mocked.
“You gave up. That means I win.”
“Nice try, bitch.” He shoved Rodrigo with his foot and his friend rolled onto his back. “What was I supposed to do? Beat you? Choke you out?”
Rodrigo gazed up at him with sexy, lazy interest. “Well now you’re just flirting.”
“Yeah, you’d like that, you fucking pervert.”
“I’m a pervert, but you’re chickenshit.”
He was on Ro before he could stop himself, straddling his hips, his hand on his throat. Rodrigo’s dark eyes burned with lust and challenge. When Severin froze, Ro tried to shove him off, but he only tightened his grip.
“Now you know why this can’t happen.”
Rodrigo’s breathing was labored, and he trembled. “And you know you could break me in half if I ever did something you didn’t like. You’re not a helpless little boy anymore.”
Why was he letting himself do this? He needed to walk away. This wasn’t just wrestling anymore and he was engaged to a woman he was madly in love with.
The lines with Ro were so blurry, though, and they weren’t doing anything sexual, right?
Unable to resist, he let his hand slide up Rodrigo’s neck, and grasped his jaw. He wanted to rub a thumb over Ro’s bottom lip – maybe push his thumb into his mouth. His cock throbbed, offering other suggestions on what else to force between the bastard’s lips.
“I won’t fuck around on Minnow,” he told Rodrigo, making himself hear the words too.
Guilt flashed in Ro’s expression. “I’m not asking you to cheat.”
Minnow hinted at wanting to watch them together, but still...
“You don’t even know if you like submitting.”
Rodrigo’s body language answered that question. Severin had the urge to crush Ro to the ground and show him he didn’t want it like he thought he did.
“At this point I’m nothing more than a sex toy in your relationship with Minnow. I want more than that for my life.”
Severin relaxed his grip on Ro’s throat, but didn’t get off him. “You don’t have to fuck my woman if you don’t want to. I didn’t know it was a hardship, or that you were just doing it for me.”
“You know that’s not what I mean.”
He needed an answer before they went any further. “Are you fucking my brother?”
Rodrigo’s brows rose. “What? No! Why would you think that?”
“You want to, though.” Dark feelings churned deep down, and Severin shoved them away. He wasn’t sure what the emotions he was experiencing meant, and it felt safer not to look at them.
“It’s not like that.”
“Bullshit.”
Rodrigo’s deep voice lowered to a whisper. “He’s not the one I want.”
“Ro...”
“I know.” He glanced away, his disappointment evident in his expression. “It’s never going to happen, and it’s time I move on.”
A sick feeling twisted in Severin’s stomach. “What the fuck are you talking about? You don’t have to go anywhere.”
“I’m supposed to be happy with scraps forever?” He snorted. “I’m in your relationship, but I’m not. I love both of you, but you don’t love me. Maybe Minnow does, in a way, but only as far as she’s allowed. You two mean everything to me, but I’m –” He paused, swallowed. “Superfluous.”
What did Rodrigo want, for fuck’s sake? “You’re not. I want you to stay with us – I just don’t think I can give you what you want.”
“You care enough for her to push your boundaries and you don’t feel the same way about me. Fair enough. I just wish you’d tell me to give up on you so I can move on.”
Severin got off of him. “I can’t do this right now.”
“You always ‘can’t do this right now.’” Rodrigo pushed himself up off the ground. “It’s fine, fuck. I get it. I’m such a fucking idiot.”
As Rodrigo tried to stride away, Severin grabbed his wrist and dragged him back down. Ro swung at him, but Severin didn’t bother to block, accepting the sting of a split lip, the taste of blood. They rolled on the ground, Rodrigo fighting hard as Severin slowly got his body under control. Stomach to stomach, with Rodrigo’s wrists pinned above his head, both of them breathing hard, Severin could feel Ro’s rock hard dick pressing against his thigh. Rodrigo’s gaze burned with rage, but his body was still responding the same way his was. The drumming of Ro’s heart against his chest excited him, and the taste of blood in his mouth made him want to shove his tongue down Ro’s throat, to make him taste what he’d done.
“Fuck you,” Rodrigo growled. “Let me go.”
“If you wanted to fucking go, you’ve always known where the goddamned door was.”
The feel of Rodrigo pinned under his body made him want to fuck – to bite – to make the other man cry out in pain and submission. Would he beg for Severin to stop? Would he fight or submit?
Tension thrummed, hot and tight, zinging back and forth between them. Rodrigo opened his mouth to say something, but only shuddered.
“So who’s winning?” came a feminine voice, interrupting the tension.
Severin pushed away from Rodrigo, feeling as if he should confess what was going on. But what was going on, really? What could he say? That Rodrigo wanted him and he didn’t want Rodrigo? She had to have caught onto that by now. How could she not have caught on?
“You, preciosa,” Rodrigo said smoothly, rising and kissing her cheek. “As you deserve to.” He accepted the bottle of water Minnow had brought down for him and left for the house.
Brows drawn, she watched him walk away. If she’d noticed his hard-on, she was polite enough not to mention it.
Chapter Two
“Need some help?” Loïc’s smooth, French-accented voice was intimately quiet. He hadn’t done anything inappropriate, but Minnow’s girl senses were always alert for hints of inappropriateness around him.
Severin got uncomfortable when they were talking to each other, but it was hard to avoid someone staying in the house. It was too bad Severin wouldn’t just command her not to speak to Loïc, but as it was, she couldn’t be that rude without a direct order.
Two weeks in, and she found herself i
n a constant state of vigilance. When the hell would he go home? As soon as she’d thought it, she felt guilty. Severin had waited most of his life to have contact with his family, and here she was wishing his brother would take a hike. If it was Church, things would be different. Church didn’t give her the willies.
“No thanks, I don’t need help. I’m just fixing him a tray to bring down to the forge, since I don’t think he’s coming in for lunch.”
She frowned at the four no longer so little puppies. They were all being adorable and watching her with hopeful expressions, as they did whenever she set foot in the kitchen. They didn’t get table scraps, but sometimes things fell off the counter and the little piranhas were faster than she was.
“How do you know he’s not coming in for lunch?”
She shrugged. “I just do.”
“He pays you well to read his moods.”
“He does.”
“And the sex? Do you get hazard pay for that?”
She flicked a malevolent glare at him as he hopped up to sit on the kitchen counter, using his height and his mocking smile to their full effect. The more she didn’t respond to his charm, the more frustrated it seemed to make him.
“If you want to ask questions about our sex life, you’ll need to direct those questions to your brother.”
“I hear your screams.”
Like last night? Her face heated. She hoped Loïc hadn’t gone looking for Rodrigo at that point, because he’d been in the bedroom with them, holding her down while Severin edged her for a couple of hours. She’d been begging, and loudly, by the half hour mark.
“It’s consensual.”
“So I’ve heard.” He quirked a brow and Minnow was so embarrassed she wished she could melt into the floor.
“If you know, then why are you badgering me with personal questions?”
“Because you blush so prettily when I do.” He chuckled.
It wasn’t anything Severin or Rodrigo hadn’t said to her on numerous occasions, but from Loïc it was wrong. No topic seemed to be off limits with him, and he was constantly following her around, trying to get into her head.
So fucking awkward. How was she supposed to deal with this? Telling Severin might ruin the budding relationship between him and his brother, but not telling him might be misconstrued.
Tragic King (The Dominant Bastard Duology Book 2) Page 2
