The VIOLENT Series: The Complete Boxed Set

by Linnea May

  I have no idea if it actually hurt him worse than he let on, but based on the way he acted last night, it didn't seem to me as if he was very hurt. He was so composed and serious, talking to me in a matter-of-fact voice but avoiding my eyes. When I told him that I was very sorry about this, he just glared at me, saying, "You should be."

  We didn't stay long after that. He finished his drink and told me that I should get my stuff, if I had anything at his place that I wanted back. I couldn't think of anything, but asked him the same question, unsure whether I might have anything that belonged to him.

  "I don't think you do," he said. "You never asked for anything. And I never left anything."

  His words hurt, not so much because of what he said, but the way he said it. His tone was cold and unforgiving, and when I told him goodbye, he just rolled his eyes at me.

  What a waste of time I'd been for him.

  I felt awful, and I still do. I went home with my shoulders sagging low and my eyes glued to the ground, feeling lonely and lost. There was a sense of relief, too, but I felt bad about it. He was, after all, a good guy, a nice guy, and he never did anything bad to me. I can't shake the feeling of having taken advantage of him. He was like a test dummy for me, a way to see if I could be attracted to anyone else, to have that same feeling of excitement with anyone but Ryan. I took him for a test ride of some sort, and then I got rid of him as soon as I realized that he was not doing anything for me.

  I feel like the worst human being on the planet.

  "You're not," Layla assured me when I got home. "You did the right thing."

  "Maybe, but I should have done it a lot earlier," I replied, casting her a guilty look over the bottle of wine we were sharing.

  She sighed and bobbed her head from one side to the other. "Yeah, you kinda should have."

  Her honesty is painful.

  It's time for me to get back on my feet. Breaking up with Steven was only the first step in the long journey that lay ahead of me. I need to take a hard look at myself and really focus on finding my place in life.

  I decided last night that I needed a timeout from everything to do just that. Be by myself, contemplate, find myself by actively searching within me. No distractions. Just me.

  And I know exactly where to go for that.

  Griffith Park is one of the most popular destinations for hiking in the area. I've been there several times, but never by myself. It's been a while since Layla and I last made our way up the hill, surrounded by a crowd of other people as it was a sunny day on a weekend. I reckon that the place will be a lot more deserted on a Monday morning, so I decide to make my way up there the very next day after breaking up with Steven.

  Layla is surprised to see me getting up before she leaves for work, casting me a worried look as we pass in the hallway.

  "Couldn't sleep?" she asked, already dressed and ready to head out the door.

  I shook my head no and told her about my plan.

  "Finding yourself on a long hike," she concluded. "Very cliché, but it may just work. Good luck!"

  She blew me a kiss before closing the door behind her.

  Good luck. I may need that.

  It's sunny and warm when I step outside, but not yet hot. Summer is still a few weeks away, and I'm glad that my spontaneous self-finding hike idea didn't come to me in the middle of the summer. I take a deep breath, smiling as the sunlight hits my face. I head over to my car. I barely ever use it, mainly because I have nowhere to go, but I love my blue mini cooper. It's the first car I've ever owned, and certainly not the kind of car I expected to drive at this stage in my life.

  Traffic is always a hassle in this city, and I'm glad when the streets finally clear around me as I get closer to Griffith Park. There aren't many other cars in the lot where I park mine, suggesting that I was right in assuming there wouldn't be that many people around on a Monday morning. I get out of the car, stretching my limbs and breathing in the fresh morning air before I begin my hike. As I leave the lot to go up the hill, I notice another car coming to a halt in the parking lot behind me, but I don't cast more than a quick look back over my shoulder and keep going.

  There might be more people as it gets later in the day, but for now, it's just me and nature. A refreshing breeze travels across my skin, making me wonder whether I should go back to the car to fetch my sweater. I decide against it. Walking will warm me up, and it will only get warmer as the day goes on.

  I trudge my way up the hill, following the same path I've walked before, as my mind wanders. I recap the last few months, the last year, trying to remember anything that sparked my interest, any thought or idea that popped up for a few moments before passing into oblivion. I know I have a tendency to forget about things if I don't force my mind to hold onto them. I'm angry at myself for not spending more time with myself, focusing on what it is that I want to do with my life instead of worrying about my pathetic love life. It feels as if I've spent most of my time dwelling on Ryan, trying to get over him by putting out my feelers and then taking the very first guy that comes along. I didn't date anyone else, didn't even flirt with anyone. I've never been good at these things, so it's no surprise that there has never really been anyone but him.

  Anyone but the guy who made me call him master. The guy who bought me for a night and then forgot about me.

  I wonder if that's true, if he really did forget me? Did he ever think of me again? Did he miss me? Even a little bit? Did he maybe even regret his decision never to see me again?

  I doubt it. If he did, he could have contacted me. He was the one who set up those ridiculous rules, which allows him to break them.

  It's been almost a year since I said goodbye to him. If it's true what he told me, it should be about time for him to do this again, with another girl. He told me it has to be someone new every single time. For reasons I can’t seem to understand. His strict rule is so hard for me to understand that I'm beginning to doubt it. Maybe he just told me all of this to make me feel special? But why would he do that? And why pay me such an insane amount of money for something I might have done anyway? Even though I'm pretty sure things would have been different if there had been no payment involved. This way, it was clear to me what my role was supposed to be, even if it seemed to come naturally to me. I plunged in at the deep end without spending too much time thinking and wondering about it. I knew who I was to him – and I knew who he was to me.

  Or so I thought.

  I'm breaking a sweat, fighting my way further up the hill as my breathing accelerates. I was so deep in thought that I hadn't noticed how far I’d gone already. I'm nearing a little plateau that I remember is a very nice resting spot. I'm going to stop to rest and take in the view of the city below. It's a clear day and I'm sure the view will be beautiful.

  As I walk further, I make my first resolution. I need to work out more often. I'm gasping for air by the time I finally reach that little resting spot and slump down on a bench. I feel as if I just finished a marathon, even though I must've been walking for less than half an hour. I'm not even half way up to the top.

  I wipe the sweat off of my forehead and wait for my breath to calm. My eyes wander across the vast valley that spreads in front of me, a smoggy skyline consuming the center of it.

  My next resolution is to leave men out of the equation. If my brief and uneventful relationship with Steven has taught me anything, it's that I'm not ready for anything new, anything serious. It's too soon, and it shouldn't be at the top of my list. I should concentrate my focus elsewhere.

  Just as I affirm this resolution with a confident nod, I hear a crack behind me. It doesn't sound like a squirrel scurrying through the bushes, but more like a human footstep, which frightens me. I hastily turn around to check my back – and freeze in shock.

  There, standing a few feet away from me on the path, wearing a pair of snug dark jeans and a matching polo shirt that stretches around the muscles of his upper arms, is the man who has inhabited almost each and every o
ne of my thoughts for the past year. His hair is tousled, sweaty strands frame his forehead, and his chest is laboring under heavy breaths, as his piercing blue eyes – the ones I’ve seen endlessly in my dreams – are fixated on me.

  It’s my master... Ryan Hawkins.

  Chapter 32

  Ryan

  She’s staring at me with such horror in her eyes that I'm instantly flooded with regret. I don't know how I expected her to react to seeing me out of the blue after a year, but the way she's looking at me now certainly doesn't elate me in any way.

  She looks hurt and frightened, and it that impression is only magnified when she takes off her giant sunglasses to inspect me more closely. It’s as if she can't trust her eyes.

  "Ryan," she breathes out eventually in a voice laced with disbelief.

  Her eyes never moving from mine, she jumps up from the bench, and it’s obvious to me that she‘s shaking uncontrollably all over. The vibrant green of her eyes can’t hide the glistening threat of tears. A fresh breeze ruffles her messy hair, causing random strands to stick to the curve of her jawline, damp with sweat from her strenuous hike.

  "Ryan," she repeats. She scans the length of me from head to toe, and then she locks eyes with me again, still shaking her head in disbelief.

  I don't know how to interpret the way she‘s looking at me. I don't know anything right now. I haven't thought any of this through. I put off revealing myself to her because I wasn't even sure if I should let her know I was here at all.

  But now that she knows, there's no turning back. She knows I'm here. She knows I followed her up here, and she knows I came all the way to California to find her.

  In that sense, she knows more than I do at the moment. I’m standing here not knowing what to do, and for all I know, she's long since moved on and is anything but happy to see me.

  Those fears are proven wrong a moment later when she cries out my name in desperate relief and darts towards me, stumbling right into my open arms.

  I embrace her without thinking twice, and as I press her against my chest, I'm filled with a soothing warmth that I haven't felt in nearly a year, not since I had to let her go.

  I try to ignore the taunting voice in my head.

  She's dangerous. She's not good for you. You will lose yourself in her.

  Frankly, I don't care about all of that right now. All I care about is the phenomenal sensation that takes a hold of me, now that she's back in my arms.

  She buries her face against my chest, shaking and sobbing, her tears wetting my shirt.

  "My doll," I whisper, stroking my fingers soothingly through her hair, but then I grab her ponytail and gently pull on it to force her head back.

  She lifts her head instantly and looks up at me through teary eyes, her lower lip trembling as she whispers, "My master."

  My lips crush into hers with violent need, claiming her like I've never claimed anyone before. My tongue greedily invades her mouth, and our bodies press tightly against one another, aching to be one. She responds hungrily, breathing heavily and her fingers clawing into my back as she tries to pull me even closer.

  We break our kiss only to stare at each other, both gasping for air. Her green eyes are filled with unspoken questions, but she's not ready to pose any of them.

  "I've missed you so much," she breathes. "You have no idea."

  "Oh, I think I do," I reply, silencing her with another deep kiss.

  I may have come up here with no plan whatsoever, but as I'm holding her now, finally tasting her soft lips again, I know there's only one thing I really need to do.

  I need to have her. All of her. Now.

  My brain is no longer functioning, having lost all its blood supply, which has redirected to my cock, now pressing as hard as iron against her middle.

  "I need to fuck you," I whisper into her ear, her ponytail still wrapped in a tight grip as I pull her head back. "Now."

  "Yes," she breathes, and I can feel her body heat rising next to me. "Yes, you do."

  "Be good for me, doll," I tell her, before scooping her up, my hands digging into the flesh of her ass.

  She wraps her legs around my waist, her lips seeking mine again, stealing kisses as I turn back on the path from which we both came.

  "No, here, now," she insists, breathing out the words through our kiss. She points toward a hard-to-see turnoff further up the path, shielded by bushes. I catch her gaze for reassurance, and she smiles at me mischievously.

  "No one's here," she whispers, moving her hips against my pelvis, as if I needed any encouragement.

  I follow the nearly hidden pathway that she pointed out to me, and once I’ve taken about a dozen steps, I spot another bench. This one is more obscured than the other one, more hidden in the shadows and offering a sheltered place to hide.

  I place her on the bench, going down on my knees between her spread legs and pulling her shirt up. She’s wearing a sports bra with hooks in the front, making it quick and easy for me to expose her beautiful tits. I lean forward, hungrily taking her right nipple between my lips, worshipping her as she leans back and moans loudly, her hand closing around a fistful of my hair. I suck and bite on her hard nipples, remembering every inch of her body. Even though we only shared one night together almost a year ago, I remember every little thing about her. The way she arches her back, the intensity of her moans, her sensitive reactions to my touch. I know what she likes and I know how to give it to her.

  Her cheeks are flushed with need when our eyes find each other again. I hook my fingers under the waistband of her shorts, and she lifs her hips like a good girl for me, so I can pull down her shorts and panties together in one swift motion.

  She‘s suddenly overcome by a flush of embarrassment when her naked pussy is revealed to me, glistening with the evidence of desire in the sunshine.

  "Don't be shy, doll," I say, winking up at her as I sink down to taste her. Oh, how I’ve missed her.

  The stirred-up groans that escape her lips as my tongue lashes against her wet entrance fuel my desire for her. She's squirming, trying to get away from me, but I hold her in place, grabbing her thighs and pushing her legs up and wider apart. She's completely at my mercy, fighting a losing battle between arousal and shame as I eat her out to satisfy my carnal need.

  "Please, master," she pleads, her voice horse with lust. "Please, fuck me."

  I let go of her, straightening up to my full height and pushing my massive bulge in front of her face.

  "Get my cock out, doll."

  She doesn't need to be told twice, and instantly starts fiddling with my belt, her nervous fingers massaging along my hardness through the fabric of my trousers. When my erection springs free, she leans forward and anxiously takes it between her lips without being told to, and even though I should scold her, I decide to let this one slide – her lips wrapped around my cock feels so good, so right. I grab her ponytail with one hand, and even though I can hardly see straight with her tongue gliding along the lower side of my shaft, my eyes quickly scan our surroundings to make sure we're still alone. I’m finding it hard to breathe, she's sucking on my cock with such ardor that I’m afraid she’s going to send me over the edge too soon.

  I pull her back by the hair and withdraw from her mouth. I drop my lips to hers, hungrily claiming her mouth, and drop my hips so the tip of my cock is teasing her wet folds. She squirms and turns under me, moving her hips forward to draw closer to me. We both groan in ecstatic unison when I plow myself inside her, not stopping until I stretch and fill her with my entire length.

  "Did you miss me, doll?" I whisper into her ear, her tight warmth hugging my cock.

  She pants and moans, tears of fulfilled need running down her face as she nods at me. "Yes, master, I did."

  I place a kiss at the corner of her mouth, and then I can’t hold back any longer. I start fucking her like a savage beast. She takes me in with frenzied greed, shrieking with pleasure as her entire body quivers under my violent thrusts.

&n
bsp; I haven't fucked anyone like this in a very long time, not outside of my dungeon, and not without first signing the necessary paperwork and negotiating payment to safeguard my sanity.

  She tenses up as her orgasm strikes, her muscles clenching violently around my hard shaft. She peaks on my cock, taking me over the edge with her just a moment later. It’s then it hits me – this is the end of me. She’s the end of me.

  I’m lost forever.

  And there is no turning back.

  Chapter 33

  Laura

  I've missed these shackles. I've missed this collar.

  I've missed this room.

  My arms and legs are spread apart, tied to the outer edges of the cross as I stand, waiting for him. The collar around my neck has a leash attached to it, and he's been leading me through the room like a pet all day. When I didn't follow his instructions fast enough, or displeased him in any way, he yanked on the leash, causing the collar to tighten around my neck, stealing my breath away.

  I've come to love the feeling of it, so much so that I found myself deliberately delaying my response to his commands, just to have him yank at my leash again. I wonder if he knows?

  I don't know how long we've been back here. Time is a strange thing in this place. It passes without me realizing, and not only because there's no daylight to hint at the time of day. It's also the mental state he puts me in, the insanity that happens when we are alone, when he draws climax after climax from me, still leaving me feeling like I‘m in heat and wanting more. At one point, I found myself so dazed with lust that I couldn't keep my tongue inside my mouth; I was panting, yearning for more.