by Kitty Thomas
He spoke to her in low, soothing Russian, words she would never know and didn’t need to know. She was sure what he said to her in that moment were all the words he couldn’t bring himself to say under other circumstances in a language she could understand. They sounded like words of love. Promises. Vows. These foreign words etched themselves into her soul.
And she knew that no matter what happened, no matter how wrong it was or how dangerous Brian might be or any of a million things that could go wrong in that house, she had to take the risk.
Finally he stopped speaking. He took her hand and led her out of the apartment to his waiting car. She got inside without fuss or drama and put on her seat belt. A few minutes later, Anton started the car and pulled out onto the main road.
“You know I will have to start your training all over again. I must have absolute obedience—the full protocol.”
Annette stared out the passenger side window as the trees went by, hiding her smile as a familiar ache crept between her legs.
Epilogue
4 years later.
Annette was in the kitchen baking when she heard the front door slam shut. Was Anton home? She impatiently waited the one and a half minutes remaining on the timer then took the cookies out of the oven. She didn’t even bother putting the cookies on the cooling rack. Instead, she raced toward the front door.
Anton stood in the entryway, a troubled expression on his face. He’d been gone a long time today. She’d missed him, but with the look on his face, she didn’t think he’d appreciate overzealous pouncing. Instead, she went for the cautious approach, edging slowly toward him.
“Master?”
He held out his arms, and she went to him, letting out a contented sigh when she was finally enclosed in his embrace. He kissed the top of her head.
“I missed you, kiska. I had a very long day.”
“I made cookies?” It came out as a question. She knew what very long day meant. It meant he wasn’t going to play with her tonight because whatever had happened was weighing on him too heavily, and he was too exhausted for it. She tamped down the disappointed twinge.
He allowed her to lead him to the kitchen and sat at the bar stool while she poured him some milk and put cookies on a plate for him. She sat across from him and absently ran her finger over the soft inside of her collar.
“Out with it,” Anton said.
“Out with what?”
“Don’t try my patience. You’re fiddling with your collar. You have something to say. Out with it.”
“Something’s wrong. You aren’t acting normal,” Annette said.
Anton sighed. “There’s a new girl here. Her name is Vivian. She’s not quite like the others. I’m not at liberty to discuss all of the details with you, but I brought her to the house too soon, and now I’m not sure how to handle her. She’s very upset.”
Annette got up and went around to stand beside her master. She ran her fingers through his hair. “I could talk to her... if you wanted. I could calm her down. I could tell her about you and me.”
Anton snorted. “I hope you weren’t planning to lead with how you traded yourself for your sister in hopes I wouldn’t kill you both. How would that calm her?”
Annette hesitated. She’d been a very good girl for a very long time. She was a little afraid to broach the subject. But she broached it anyway.
“Well, I could lie to her.”
“I’d have to punish you. You know what we said about this. I have a zero tolerance policy.”
A sharp bolt of excitement shot between her legs. She’d really missed him today. It might not be fun play, but all she wanted right now was his hands on her. She’d take anything.
“But if I helped you by talking to her… you’d go a little easy on me, right?”
Anton shook his head. “You know I can’t do that. Even if it helps me.”
Somehow this only excited her more. “W-would you do it tonight?” Please. Please.
“I’d have to. You know I don’t like to delay punishments.”
She could see the desire in his eyes and was sure it mirrored her own. “Okay,” she said, hardening her resolve before she could lose her nerve. She knew she was playing with fire.
He nodded. “Okay.”
“Which room is she in?”
“End of the hallway here on the main floor.”
Annette left him in the kitchen and went to tell another pretty lie. She had no way of knowing it in that moment, but this particular lie would become so compelling that eventually she’d half believe it herself. Over time, as it got added to and deepened into a life of its own, it would become the creation myth that defined everything she loved about her master and everything she’d wished for from the moment they’d met. And somehow, some day, it would blossom into a kind of truth.
Even so, the punishment that was to follow would leave its searing mark on her for a long time to come.
If you enjoyed Pretty Lies, you may also enjoy these titles in the same world by Kitty Thomas:
Guilty Pleasures
Broken Dolls
Surrender
And also, (not in the Pleasure House world, but my most popular title):
Comfort Food
For a full title list please visit kittythomas.com
Author’s Note:
To hear about new releases FIRST, and for a full list of my books, please visit: kittythomas.com
Readers who love my work often ask what they can do to help. While I don’t believe my readers “owe” me anything, for those who want to know what they can do, the BEST thing you can ever do for me and my work is tell your friends about it and leave a review at the digital retailer you purchased it from. Just a line or two about what you thought. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. But those two things: reviews and word of mouth help me and my work the absolute most so that I can continue writing books for you.
Thank you so much for reading and supporting my work!
Kitty ^.^
Acknowledgments:
Thank you to the following people for their help with Pretty Lies:
Robin Ludwig @ gobookcoverdesign.com for the always amazing cover art!
Thank you to Michelle and Karen for their very helpful comments as betas.
Thank you to Cathy for copyedits. I’m terrible at commas.
And thank you to M for digital formatting! Love you!
