by Ivy Barrett
“Get on the bed and lie down on your belly,” Zilrath told her as he leaned down and tugged off his boots.
If Kellan had given her the order, she might have worried about it. But Zilrath swore Tavorians didn’t use pain to control their females. Still, trepidation knotted her gut as she moved into position. She hated it when they forbid her to come. It was almost worse than the sinking heat and sting of a spanking. Lying down on her stomach, she folded her arms and turned her head, so she could still see her mates.
Potential mates. The rebellious thought didn’t ease her anxiety.
Zilrath had taken off his jacket and boots but made no move to undress further. He grabbed two of the pillows and motioned toward her butt. “Raise your hips. I want these under you.”
She tensed. “Is this going to be another no-coming-forever sort of punishment?”
Kellan slapped her bottom hard, one side and then the other.
She gasped at the sound as much as the sting. “What the fuck was that for?”
“Watch your language,” Zilrath snapped, his tone as cold as Kellan’s.
Perfect. They were ganging up on her now.
And sure enough, Kellan followed suit. “If Zilrath wants you to know his intentions, he’ll tell you. Now be still and do as you’re told.”
Angry and outnumbered, she fell silent and impatiently waited to see what Zilrath would do next. He motioned again, so she obediently lifted her hips.
After positioning the pillows under her pelvis, he said, “Relax.” Then moved out of her field of vision.
She scoffed. She wouldn’t be able to relax until this ridiculous punishment was over.
She could hear someone moving around, but refused to look, tried to convince herself she didn’t care what they were doing.
“A Ventori pod was preparing this house for their mate,” Zilrath said. Was he talking to her or Kellan? It didn’t matter. She wasn’t going to respond regardless. “She chose one of her other matches, and they were transferred to one of the outposts.”
“They left behind some interesting toys.”
The amusement in Kellan’s tone sent a chill down her spine. Anything that amused Kellan spelled trouble for her. “What sort of toys?
Zilrath moved to the top corner of the bed and bent to one knee. He angled his body, looking at something on the bed frame or maybe the floor. She heard a metallic click, and then he caught her wrist.
“Wait! What are you doing?” She tugged against his hold, but he ignored her. He closed a restraint cuff around her wrist. It was made out of metal or alloy, but the lining felt soft against her skin. “I don’t need to be restrained,” she cried. “I won’t fight you. I want this over with as quickly as possible.”
Without speaking a word, he attached a cable to the restraint and took out the slack, neatly immobilizing her arm diagonal to her body. He circled the bed and repeated the process with her other wrist and both ankles. In a matter of minutes, she was spread-eagled on the bed, stacked pillows angling her butt into the air. Her thighs were spread, pussy and ass accessible and on display. It was degrading. She’d never been so humiliated. Not even the first time she ‘entertained’ someone on the internet had she felt this embarrassed.
“I can think of all sorts of uses for this position.” Sensual amusement rippled through Kellan’s tone. The bastard was enjoying this.
Zilrath sat on the side of the bed and grabbed a handful of her hair. “Look at me.” When she didn’t move, he slowly pulled on her hair, forcing her head back, then to the side. “Both Kellan and I are inundated with conflict at work. Our home must be a haven, a safe place we can come to unwind and find comfort. Our mate is the primary source of that comfort. She cannot add to the conflict or all is lost.”
Her lips trembled as shame washed over her soul. “I already said I was sorry. I wasn’t thinking about you. I just wanted—”
He stemmed the flow of words with his fingers against her lips. “You will only speak to answer a question until this session has ended. Do you understand?”
Her chest ached with unshed tears. She was guilty as hell but honestly couldn’t explain why she’d stirred up trouble. She usually avoided conflict. “Yes, Sir,” she whispered, then closed her eyes.
“Look at me.”
This was worse than Kellan’s punishments. Why didn’t Zilrath just spank her and be done with it? Reluctantly, she opened her eyes. He looked so sad and so damn disappointed. A tear escaped the corner of her eye and ran into her hair. “I’m sorry.”
“I know, but this cannot happen again. Kellan and I are working hard to find a middle ground where we can live comfortably. It’s not easy, but it will be impossible if you are sabotaging our efforts.”
“I won’t,” she insisted. “Never again. I promise.”
“I think you mean that right now, but this is too important. I must drive the message home. I already care for you and want this joining to work. That’s why I must do this.” He loosened his hold on her hair and returned her head to a more natural angle. Then he eased her head down until the side of her face rested on the bedding.
She tried to watch him, but he quickly moved out of her partially obstructed line of sight.
For a moment she couldn’t see anything except for her arm and the section of wall in front of her face. Tension built and she clenched her fists. Was this pause intentional? Had they left the room? She tried to turn her head more sharply, but her hair blocked her view.
“Relax, or you’ll strain your neck.” Kellan’s strong hand lightly squeezed the back of her neck until she returned to a more comfortable position. “Part of discipline is learning to accept each element as it comes.”
“I’m not good with surprises.”
The mattress dipped as someone joined her on the bed. Kellan stood near the head of the bed, so this explained where Zilrath had gone.
Zilrath ran a finger down her spine as he spoke in a conversational tone. “A pureblood Tavorian male can produce different chemical compounds through the skin on his hands, or his cock.” As he spoke, his hands wandered across her back, along her sides and onto the cheeks of her ass. “The potency and nature of these chemicals are determined by his emotions.” He stroked her hips and waist, then back up her sides. “He can control the compound to an extent on his hands, but his cock is entirely spontaneous. If he’s aroused, the chemicals heighten desire and the intensity of pleasure for him and his partner. This increases his chances that the female will allow him to join with her again. Obviously, the more he fucks her, the better his chances of producing offspring. It’s an evolutional adaption.”
She’d already felt the effects of the oily substance he was describing now. What in the world did the other compounds do? And why this lesson on Tavorian biology?
He knelt between her thighs, and she froze, paralyzed by uncertainty. Was he going to fuck her while she was unable to move, maybe take her roughly without letting her come?
She waited for the brutal thrust of his cock into her pussy. Then another possibility trapped the breath in her lungs. Oh, God, is he going to fuck my ass?
He did neither, and her sluggish mind finally focused on his words. There had to be a reason he was babbling on about the oil his skin produced. Her eyes widened, and her breath escaped in a shuddering rush. “What else can your skin produce?” And why involve his cock if his other compounds weren’t sexual?
“The second compound is a stimulant, but it’s much less pleasant than the first.” His fingers swept up her inner thigh and teased her folds. “This is what I want, what I ached for the entire time I was gone. I want the hot grip of my mate’s soft pussy. I want to fuck you slowly and kiss you deeply until you beg me to let you come.”
She whimpered. His fingers teased over her slit as he spoke, reawakening her desire.
“Then I want to sit back and watch Kellan fuck you. I never thought of myself as a voyeur, but I can’t get the images out of my mind.”
“Let�
�s do that,” she pleaded. “It’s what I want too.”
“No. You want Kellan’s seed dripping from your cunt and spilling down your throat. You want to hurt me.” His tone turned brittle and cold, then suddenly his cock stabbed into her pussy. She was wet, so there was no pain, but it felt intrusive and punitive. He held perfectly still as he finished his explanation. “This compound is produced by my anger. At this potency, the sensations should be quite unpleasant. And inescapable.”
He withdrew completely, and she waited for her punishment to start. Unpleasant, not painful? She could deal with that. It started slowly, a faint increase in temperature. Then tingles broke out, making her inner walls clench spasmodically.
“How long will this last?” Rubbing against the bedding made the prickling heat worse, so she tried to hold perfectly still.
“It will last until I apply the antidote.”
She gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. The sensations attacked her in waves. Swelling with heat and irritation, then ebbing into the faintest tingle. This wasn’t so bad. If she breathed through the worst of it, she had a second or two to regroup before the next wave hit.
But Zilrath wasn’t finished. In fact, he’d barely begun. He caressed her ass cheeks, stroking the skin almost apologetically. Then his fingers slid into the valley between her cheeks.
“No!” She clenched hard, determined to keep him away from her sensitive opening.
“A little help, please,” Zilrath said, and Kellan was happy to lend a hand, or two.
Kellan held her cheeks open, so Zilrath could take his time. He circled her rippled opening several times before pushing a finger—no, that had to be two—deep inside her back channel. Her muscles stretched, and heat flared quickly into burn. She cried out and jerked her hips, but there was no slack in the restraints. She couldn’t move, couldn’t escape the incessant burning.
“That hurts!” she cried. “It really hurts.”
Zilrath was unmoved by her pleas. “There are more nerve endings back here than in more traditional locations.” He rotated his wrist and repositioned his fingers, pushing even deeper into her helpless body. “Accept the pain. The harder you fight against the surges, the longer they will last.”
“I hate you! This is torture. I’d rather have Kellan spank me with a belt!”
Kellan released her ass cheeks and moved back up the bed. “Your body knows how to process these sensations. You’re already soaking wet.”
To her horror, Zilrath wasn’t finished. He withdrew his fingers and slowly pushed something even larger into her ass. It was cold and slick, definitely not his cock. A dildo or some sort of plug? He pulled it back just as slowly, causing the sensations to ripple and swirl. There had been no change in the thickness, so it wasn’t a butt plug.
She shrank away from the invasion, but Zilrath easily followed her every move. He didn’t touch her with anything but the cursed toy. No reassuring pat or warm caress. Her face flushed with humiliation and regret. Even as she made Kellan come, she’d known there would be consequences. Still, she’d never imagined anything like this.
Zilrath casually fucked her ass with the unseen toy, while her nervous system went haywire. She thrashed against the bed, tugging hard on her restraints. None of it did any good. Her skin was on fire, and her muscles were taking turns cramping. “Make it stop! I’m sorry! Oh, God, I’m so so sorry!” Her voice broke, and a ragged sob shuddered through her.
Zilrath shoved the toy deep, then leaned over her. With the weight of his body pressing her down into the bed, it felt like his cock was penetrating her ass, not the nasty little toy.
“Why are you suffering?” he whispered into her ear.
She screamed in exasperation. They’d been through all this already. “I screwed up! I made Kellan come twice knowing it would make you angry.” She tried to buck and toss her hips, but she could barely move. Tears streamed down her face, wetting her cheeks and blurring her vision. She was trapped, covered, utterly dominated by the nicer of her two mates. Endless swells of pleasure-pain eroded her emotional defenses, leaving her raw and exposed. And her pussy ached. God above, how her pussy ached. “Please, Zilrath, fuck me. I can’t take this anymore.”
“Then tell me why,” Zilrath said in the same flat tone. “Why did you want to hurt me and create conflict between Kellan and me?”
“I don’t know,” she wailed, sobbing harder now. “I was selfish. I’m sorry.”
With a frustrated sigh, he rocked back onto his knees and drew the toy nearly out of her ass. “Do you want this pod to be successful?”
“Yes!”
He paused, then sighed. “I don’t believe you.”
The toy drove back into her ass with one brutal thrust. She cried out, the sound choked and broken. “Stop! Please, please stop.”
“If you were serious about this pod, you wouldn’t provoke us.” He fucked her hard with the toy, ruthlessly keeping her orgasm just out of reach.
“I’m s-sorry,” she sobbed. The two words repeated in an endless litany as the hated toy penetrated her ass over and over. She felt defiled, humiliated, her anger long past. She had selfishly shoved Zilrath away when all he’d done was try to please her. Gradually, her tears dried up. She was empty, utterly spent. She lay passive and resigned, accepting the punitive thrusts of her tormentor. “Why won’t you believe me?” she whispered, voice trembling.
He slowed and finally stopped, but left the tip just inside her, a silent reminder of his domination.
She didn’t move, was half-afraid to breathe. Without the endless shuttle of the toy, the intensity eased just enough to reengage her mind. If she said the wrong thing, he would resume her punishment, or move on to something even more degrading. “I want to be a good mate to both of you. I honestly don’t know why I hurt you, but it will never happen again.”
After another long pause, he removed the toy and set it aside. “We need a female who is as dedicated to this pod as we are. You need to decide if that female is you.” He pushed his fingers into her ass, and within seconds all she felt was pleasant warmth and an occasional tingle. But her pussy still smoldered and pulsed.
She heard the clank of a belt buckle, then the shuffling of clothes. Something thick and warm slowly sank into her pussy. She moaned, welcoming his cock with a firm squeeze. He didn’t stop until he bottomed out inside her, but he didn’t fuck her either. He held perfectly still and let her body absorb the antidote.
“Please, Zilrath. I really need you.”
She heard his heavy sigh, then his hands gripped her hips, and he pulled nearly out. She thought he’d withdraw completely, but he drove back in. Then his hands slid up her sides and cupped her breasts. Her nipples tingled and her clit twitched. Clearly, the nature of his oil had returned to the sexual stimulant. He fucked her, steady, smooth thrusts that eased her discomfort and quickly triggered her orgasm. His release echoed hers, the warm gush of seed soothing her from the inside out. The short burst of pleasure seemed anticlimactic after the agonizing buildup, but at this point, she’d take what she could get.
He pulled out of her pussy a short time later and crawled off the bed. Emotions welled inside her again, but she stubbornly held back the tears. She heard the shuffling of clothes, so wasn’t surprised to find him fully dressed when he moved back into her line of sight. His features were still tense, and he avoided her eyes as he freed the restraints from the cables. He left the cuffs around her wrists and ankles. Without another word, he walked into the bathroom.
Jasmine rolled to her side and drew her knees toward her chest, finally releasing the tears. She felt miserable and abused, but his words echoed through her mind.
We need a female who is as dedicated to this pod as we are. You need to decide if that female is you.
Self-pity and shame buffeted her in alternating waves. One minute she hated them for being so unreasonable. The next she hated herself for being such a bitch. She sobbed into a pillow until strong arms wrapped around her and
pulled her against a warm bare chest. Thinking it was Kellan, she wrapped her arm around his back and buried her face against his neck. She inhaled deeply, but the scent was wrong. This was Zilrath, not Kellan. She thought Zilrath had headed for the shower. Apparently, he’d only washed his hands.
Wanting to be as far away from Zilrath as possible, she shoved against his chest. “I want Kellan,” she cried, not caring if she sounded petulant.
“Zilrath disciplined you, so Zilrath sees to your recovery,” Kellan said firmly.
She turned her head sharply, following the sound of Kellan’s voice. He was seated in one of the chairs by the window. Had he been there the entire time watching her utter humiliation? Of course he had. He’s the one who told Zilrath to discipline her.
Quickly deciding she didn’t want to be around either of her mates, she tried to scoot off the bed. Zilrath easily caught her and pulled her semi-struggling body back into his arms. She didn’t know when he’d taken off his shirt, but his sculpted chest was warm and inviting. He was propped against the padded headboard, legs stretched out in front of him. She settled sideways across his lap, her butt resting in the space between his legs. Reluctantly, she pressed her side against his chest and laid her head on his shoulder, or actually his upper chest. She couldn’t quite reach his shoulder. Zilrath wrapped his arms around her, and just held her for a while.
Her tears eventually stopped, leaving her drained and sad. “You said you wouldn’t hurt me.”
“I hurt you because you hurt me,” he countered, his voice modulated and calm again. “If you don’t want what to be punished, don’t misbehave.”
It really was that easy. Temper tantrums and manipulative antics had never gotten her far in adolescence. Why had she even attempted such a flawed strategy? She knew there was more to this than wanting to go out with a friend. This disaster had been a symptom of a much larger problem. Unfortunately, she hadn’t yet figured out what was really bothering her.
“Now that you’ve been chastised for your wrong choices,” Zilrath said after a long pause, “let’s talk about Nikki’s invitation.”
