by Merel Pierce
She noticed another small brass knob similar to the one that marked the bathroom’s location and made her way curiously towards it. When her hand closed over the knob, she found it turned easily enough, and when the latch gave way, she pushed the wooden panel gently inward. A small light flickered on automatically, revealing an average sized closet.
She stepped forward, looking over the interior with mild interest. A row of suit jackets, button down shirts, slacks, and jeans filled the bulk of the space. Beneath them on the floor a two-tiered shoe rack was heavily burdened with a wide variety of fine dress shoes, boots, and sneakers.
Reluctantly, she backed out of the closet and shut the door, skirting around the bed and making her way toward the chair in the corner. Once seated, December proceeded to pour herself a cup of coffee from the carafe. When she’d finished, she sagged back against the side of the chair and sipped the warm dark liquid while she brooded.
While the caffeine should have made her more alert, by the time the cup was empty she felt tired instead. Admittedly, it had been a long night, and she was still recovering from her attack. Having nothing better to do, she decided a nap might be in order. After all, the male had told her to rest.
She glanced longingly towards the bed, wishing she could bear the idea of curling up in the cum-stained blankets. But she knew what would happen if she did, and the fear was abruptly confirmed by the way the muscles in her stomach clenched at the thought of being surrounded by the alpha’s scent. She couldn’t nap there. Not unless she wanted him to come back and find her masturbating with her face buried in the sheets where they smelled the most like him. Her lip pulled back in disgust. Nope, that wouldn’t work.
Sighing, she drew her knees up to her chest and pulled the borrowed shirt down over them like she had the night before, effectively trapping her thighs against her stomach and allowing her to relax as she sat her empty cup aside. She let her head recline, resting against the high padded back of the chair as she gazed up at the dimly lit ceiling. In the back of her mind, she knew she should be doing something constructive like planning her captor’s seduction and her eventual escape. But right now, every time she tried to focus, her brain got hung up on the alpha with the impressive cock. No, right now it was better not to try to think at all.
Instead, she focused on her breathing. She inhaled slowly until her lungs were full, then exhaled at an even pace until they had deflated again. Her breathing slowed with the exercise, and her eyes drooped as sleep became a more tangible goal. Soon enough, her lashes fluttered down and she drifted off.
***
Nikolai closed the door softly behind him, mindful of the sleeping girl in the chair nearby. With a twist of his wrist the lock turned over, and it took only a few silent steps for him to be standing before his dozing captive. He assessed her for several moments, taking in the sight of her empty cup, wet hair, and stolen clothes. He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring when he caught the faintest hint of her spent orgasm, the delicate scent of her arousal still clinging to her skin. The cotton material did little to hide it. His lip curled with amusement. It wasn’t hard to reason out why she was sleeping in the chair instead of the bed. Stubborn little thing.
“December, wake up.”
She startled, lashes fluttering up as her brow knit with concern. “Hmm, what?” Bleary eyed, she sat up straight, slipping her legs out from under the shirt when she realized he was standing in front of her. She blinked rapidly, her eyes flickering from his face to the bowl in his hand and back again as she tried to focus.
“Stand up, please.” She evacuated the chair in a hurry, slipping around him to stand just out of reach nearby. Nikolai moved forward, lowering the bowl to the table as he turned to seat himself. He then angled his head her direction, meeting her gaze as he pointed towards his knee.
“Sit.” The girl frowned and shifted uncertainly, obviously trying to work out his motivation for wanting her in his lap. “I am not accustomed to repeating myself, little wolf. I do not intend to harm you, so I would advise that you comply before I lose my patience.”
He didn’t miss the flash of indignation that passed through her expression as she briefly considered refusing him, but sensible creature that she was, it didn’t take her long to give up the notion. She crept forward between his spread knees, eyeing him warily as she turned sideways and lowered herself gingerly onto his thigh.
“Good.” Nikolai retrieved the bowl from nearby, holding it between them as he unceremoniously lifted a spoonful of hearty stew well above the lip of the dish for her inspection. “As you seem unable to feed yourself properly, I have decided to it for you.”
Her mouth fell open in disbelief, and for a moment he was certain she meant to protest. He’d been banking on just that, in fact. He was eager for a reason to punish her. Of course, taking her sexual nature into account he’d already decided that any punishment designed for her would end the same way -- with her humiliated, and desperately wanting him to fuck her.
He was disappointed when the girl’s shoulders slumped, and she begrudgingly leaned forward to sniff the offered spoonful. He’d told her to choose her battles carefully, and apparently, she’d taken his advice to heart. Though she decided to play along, he could tell it cost her pride. Watching the mixture of emotions play across her pretty little face as she opened her mouth and allowed him to feed the beef and tomato mixture to her was satisfying enough to sate his desire for punishment. For now.
“Tell me about your childhood.”
She shot him an unpleasant look as she chewed and swallowed what he had deposited on her tongue. “Tell you what, exactly?”
Nikolai lowered his gaze as he spooned up another mouthful of stew, returning his attention to her when he lifted the utensil for a second time. “Were you ever in foster care, or did you remain in a group home until you ‘aged out’?”
She stared at him blankly for a moment, still fighting the obvious desire to tell him to go to hell. “I had a few foster homes, but they never lasted.” She paused long enough to open her mouth for him to deposit the food, chewing and swallowing mechanically as she continued to eye him balefully. “People thought something was wrong with me.”
“And they took advantage,” he finished for her. She shrugged, shifting her weight as she took another mouthful of food from him. He was conscious of the way she perched just on the edge of his thigh, careful to avoid pressing the more intimate parts of her anatomy against him. He drew in a deep breath when her gaze dropped between them to watch him spoon another morsel from the broth, and his senses tingled as the sweetness of the girl’s scent trickled into his sinuses and confirmed his suspicions. Whatever had caused her arousal before, his nearness was obviously rousing the interest of the small female again. That pleased him.
“Whatever, it happens. My childhood was crap, ok? And I didn’t age out, I left the program.”
“I imagine that’s how you came to find yourself working at Fortura, then. Carlos Ortega always had a particularly disgusting talent for luring underage women to their ruin.” Nikolai grumbled, unable to keep the judgment from his tone.
“I was already ruined by then, so it’s not like it was anything new,” she rolled her eyes. “Besides, Carlos wasn’t that bad.” He frowned, displeased by the fact that she seemed genuine in her declaration. He knew Ortega. The old beta was a coyote and a bastard.
“I doubt many of the women who worked for him would agree. But I confess that makes me curious. What atrocities did you endure in child services that made working for Carlos an improvement?” She took another bite as he offered it, casting off his concern with a wave of her hand as she chewed.
“It’s not like that. I think Carlos felt sorry for me… he didn’t treat me the same as the other girls.” She shrugged again. “When I said I mostly cleaned up, I meant it. The only person I really ever ‘took care of’ was Carlos, and once in a while some associate of his. When he asked, which was rare, all I had to do was give head. He never
allowed anything else.” Nikolai couldn’t help the way his muscles tensed under her admission, and it was all he could do not to sneer.
He wanted to encourage the female to speak openly but knew given her history she was likely to shut down if he became aggressive. So, despite his displeasure, he kept quiet and continued to feed her, forcing a neutral noise of interest.
She watched him warily for the duration of several bites, as if she had sensed the change in his energy and was anticipating an outburst. She was just as perceptive as he’d suspected the night before. That too, was pleasing. When it had been long enough that she seemed confident that his anger would not come, she finally dared to meet his gaze.
“Please, continue.” Nikolai dipped his head.
“Well, it just wasn’t that bad. He got me and my friend this little rathole apartment and made sure I could pay my bills. He hired a personal trainer and a self-defense instructor to teach me how to take care of myself. I learned how to shoot a gun. He taught me a little about the business and dealing with clients…How to read them and identify their tells. The only people who ever gave me trouble were the other girls, and that was just because they hated him treating me different. Even that only got out of hand a few times. He didn’t let anyone else screw with me.”
“Why do you suppose he did those things for you?” He asked on a purr, admittedly curious as to what Carlos’s end game had been with his little omega. From a business standpoint, he couldn’t think of a reason that would justify sinking that kind of money into a single girl. Especially one who wasn’t an earner. Not unless there was a payout.
“I’m sure he was full of it, but he was always telling me that I was special. Unique. Never said why. He just kept telling me that I was destined for greater things, and that once I discovered my gift, I could rule men with it.” Her expression soured. “Stupid, I know. For a while I actually believed it. But hell, I was only a kid. Anyway. A couple years later he took on some new business associates and got all cagey. He told me it wasn’t safe for me there anymore. Gave me ten grand and sent me on my way. The rest is history. Here I am.”
Nikolai sat aside the now empty bowl, lifting a hand to tuck the damp and tangled locks of her hair behind her ear. “I suppose I should be grateful, then. One way or another, it appears I have him to thank for bringing you to me.” Her look was chastising, obviously not finding the same humor in the idea that he did.
As for what she’d said about Ortega, he wasn’t sure what to make of it. Had he somehow known she was omega? It seemed unlikely. An omega would have made the man quite a bit of money, and he didn’t see the beta passing up an opportunity like that without a good reason. Perhaps Nikolai would make a visit to where the old man was convalescing in a retirement home just outside his sector and find out for himself.
For now, he’d continue to focus on his female’s introduction to her new life. “Little wolf,” he purred throatily, his fingers curling around her own as he lifted her hand to brush a kiss across her knuckles. “I’d like you to bring me the brush from the vanity cabinet in the bathroom.”
While she seemed puzzled by the change of subject, she didn’t argue. Judging by how quickly she stood up, Nikolai thought it likely she was eager for the excuse to put distance between them. After all, the scent of her arousal had only continued to grow more obvious as he fed her. His slacks were tented uncomfortably in response to her unconscious interest, his ego stoked by how quickly her body had begun to react to his nearness. He smirked as he watched her pad across the carpet, returning from her errand with the same bewildered look on her face.
She paused before him, extending the boar bristle brush his direction without questioning him as he expected. Again, he found himself a little disappointed that she didn’t resist. When Nikolai took the brush from her hand, he allowed his fingers to brush lazily against her own. Her sharp intake of breath drew his eyes upwards, and his cock twitched painfully against his zipper at the sight of her parted lips and the gorgeous amber eyes that were already glazing over with hunger.
“Thank you,” he murmured easily as he laid the brush aside and motioned for the girl to turn around. When she pivoted obediently, Nikolai’s hands shot out to grip her hips when she’d gone so far that her back was to him, stopping her motion before she could complete the spin. She frowned at him over her shoulder, going stiff when he drew back on her with steady pressure.
Her movements were jerky, her balance faltering when he’d pulled her far enough that the placement of his knee between her thighs forced the girl’s legs to part. Her muscles tightened in protest when he continued to drag her backwards until she was hovering above his suited leg, her arms slightly aloft. “Sit.”
Though she refused to look at him, her body language communicated the same indignation she’d experienced before. His hands flexed against her hips, edging her towards obedience when the weight of his grip forced her knees to bend. Her resistance gave as he moved her into position astride his thigh, the telling heat of her sex now pressed soundly against his leg. Exactly where she hadn’t wanted it to be. Nikolai leaned forward, nuzzling at her ear as he whispered a taunting, “Now stay, sweet one,” as she hunched her shoulders against the shiver his heated breath elicited.
He retrieved the brush from the table, drawing the mass of her hair back over her shoulders where he began to brush it. He started at the bottom, working his way up the damp silvery length at a leisurely pace. She shifted uncomfortably, bracing her weight on the heels of her hands against his knee as she tried to take some of the pressure off the more invasive point of contact he’d forced on her. Nikolai smiled a secret satisfaction at her struggle, intentionally allowing his fingertips to ghost over the lobe of her ear or the side of her throat as he continued to work the bristles through her hair.
December found it difficult to hide the goosebumps his touch brought forth, but she tried valiantly to ignore it. The girl was making every effort to seem unfazed, but the spike in her temperature and the sweet fragrance of lust gave her away. Nikolai began to purr, intent on persuading the girl’s muscles to relax so that she might enjoy his attention and lower her guard.
He spoke casually then, trying to engage his little pet despite a growing erection that was demanding to be set loose. “I was a privileged child, as I’m sure you can imagine. My brother and I wanted for nothing. That is not to say that our lives were easy. Much like yourself, there was very little time for us to truly enjoy our childhood.”
“You grow up fast when your surrounded by crime and your guardians are criminals,” she muttered softly, a hint of what sounded almost like a cautious sense of solidarity coloring her tone.
“How very true.” Finished with his self-appointed task, Nikolai sat the brush aside and continued to purr as he leaned towards the small female perched on his knee. He dropped his chin to rest on her shoulder even as his hands circled the girl’s waist, dipping lazily towards the junction between her legs.
Initially, he had intended to stretch their conversation out. But the longer she sat on his lap teetering precariously on the edge of sexual intoxication, the less he cared about making small talk.
“While I was away, you touched yourself,” he accused huskily. “I smelled it on you when I returned… Just like I smell your arousal now.”
The omega went very still, not daring even to breath as he pushed one hand between her thighs. His index finger traced along the centerline of her sex through the thin fabric that separated them, and he groaned softly when he found the material damp.
“This morning I had business to see to. Business that you complicated for me.” Nikolai informed her, altering his course so that his hands slid up the girl’s ribcage and cupped her breasts through the borrowed shirt, kneading and squeezing in a way that made her whimper. “Do you have any idea how difficult it is to discuss financial arrangements with an effeminate beta who is nervous because your dick is hard the entire meeting, and he’s afraid you might rape him?”
/> “Sounds like a personal problem,” she muttered petulantly.
Nikolai chuckled as he angled his head to lick at the bruise he’d left on her throat the evening before. She winced, another small tremor making her jerk and twitch when he drew her back against his chest. “Are you certain you wouldn’t like for me to make it your problem?”
“You really are an asshole, you know that?”
He grinned in triumph, pleased that she hadn’t been able to keep her attitude in check. Of course, he wasn’t playing fair. Not that it mattered. Just like it didn’t matter that her name calling was so insignificant an infraction that he would have been hard pressed to acknowledge it at all, were she any other female. But Nikolai was looking for a reason to punish her, and he intended to make good use of any excuse she gave him, no matter how small. “I warned you about being disrespectful.”
It was an easy thing to capture both her wrists in her current position, and the moment he had, he then pulled the girl to her feet and spun her to face him. Still maintaining his grip, Nikolai closed his thighs, smirking up at the wide-eyed female wickedly. “Now you will learn why I advised against such behavior.” Her cheeks flushed, fear and disbelief flickering through those expressive eyes as the realization of what he was about to do set in.
“No!” She set her heels, pulling frantically against the shackle like grip he maintained on her wrists. He gave her a little tug in reply, upsetting her balance.
“Yes.”
The declaration was given calmly, despite how his pulse raced, and his dick throbbed at the idea of what was about to take place. A stout jerk of his arm had the girl tumbling into his lap, where he twisted her so that she lay astride his thighs face down. She bucked and cursed, struggling for all she was worth as he twisted her arms behind her back and pressed her wrists together at the base of her spine.
