“That’s his thinking, yes. And your father is the most respectable pimp out there. My family may be a bunch of thieves and killers and gangsters, but we have an image to uphold. We have some small degree of honor left. So my father chose your family because of the veneer of respectability.”
“You don’t sound like you agree.”
“My feelings on the matter aren’t important.”
I wiggle my ass against his cock. He stiffens slightly and I smile to myself. He’s right, I’m not powerless. I can make his cock hard like magic.
“It’s important to me,” I say, snuggling tighter. “I want to know what you think.”
“If I had my way, we wouldn’t do this. But I’m not the Pakhan.” His hand slips into my hair and pulls—not hard, but enough to get my attention. “And you aren’t either. It’s not our place to question.”
“You’re right. I know that.”
“So why ask the dangerous questions?”
“I guess some things are worth the risk.”
He grumbles and kisses my neck before releasing my hair.
“I want you to speak your mind, but be careful. Do you understand me?”
“I understand.”
“Good.” He kisses me again. So tender and gentle. But there’s a darkness and a violence inside of him that simmers toward the surface. “Take a shower. I’ll get that warm towel. We’ll need to go easy on you for a day or two.”
“What if I don’t want to go easy?”
He laughs and bites my shoulder. “There are other things are can do. Now go.”
I get up and take a few steps. Sure enough, my ass stings like I’d been beaten into submission. He watches me, his cock halfway stiff, and I feel a thrill.
I can do that. I make him excited. Just looking at me gets him hard only minutes after coming between my legs.
How do I have the power to make this man desire me so much?
I grin stupidly as I turn on the shower.
But his words echo in my head.
We don’t have the power to change things. We can only do so much.
I’m not worthless. I’m not useless.
But some things are beyond me.
And I don’t know what I can do about it.
His family is moving in a direction I don’t want, and he seems to agree with me. But neither of us can keep it from happening.
So what the hell can we do?
If I’m so strong, why can’t I save everyone?
When I’m cleaned off and dressed, he gets me settled in my chair. The warm towel does feel soothing on my aching butt. He goes to leave, but I make him stay. He frowns slightly, quizzical, head tilted.
“You don’t have to run off, you know,” I say quietly.
He nods once, pulls up a chair, and sits.
“Hand me that book,” he says, nodding at the last book still standing on the table.
I toss it over. He catches it.
I pick up War and Peace and we start to read.
Chapter 18
Siena
Maxim was right. I’m sore for a few days after that punishment. He goes easy on me—but he doesn’t keep his hands to himself.
It’s like I woke something up and can’t put it back down.
Not that I want to. We sleep in bed together that night, the first time since our first evening together, what feels like forever ago. He fucks me slowly, almost tenderly, hands cupping my breasts, and I come as I ride him into oblivion.
It’s the same thing the next morning. Tender tongue on my clit, his hard cock between my legs. He takes me, and takes me, and takes me, and over the next few days we have more sex than I thought was possible in such a short time.
We don’t talk about the change. Neither of us seems like we want to admit it. I’m afraid if I mention anything, it’ll break the spell. My feelings for him are complicated—I’m still angry about what happened at The Velvet Rope and blame him for a lot of my misery—but I’m beginning to soften a bit.
Maybe it’s all the hot sex turning my head to mush.
Not like I’m complaining.
He’s insatiable, and I can’t get enough. He fucks me from behind in the shower. He makes me suck his cock while I tease my own clit and when I’m about to come, he finishes deep between my legs while I scream his name.
I notice a change in him, too. He cuddles me at night in the darkness after fucking me into submission. He whispers sweet things in my ear. He tells me he’ll slay a dragon for me. He’ll invade a kingdom for me. He’ll give me the world, and all I have to do is ask.
But eventually, I need to eat, so when Emiliya invites me out to lunch, I decide to accept.
“When will you be back?” Maxim looks at me like he’s about to rip my clothes off and refuse to let me go.