“I see.” His voice is dangerously low. He’s like me, he gets quiet when he’s mad. “And you came to the kitchens?”
“Yes.” I’m not going to throw Buttons under the bus. Let Gabriel think I figured out my way down here on my own. “It was nice to have a conversation with decent people.”
He prowls closer. “What did you talk about?”
“You, actually.”
He stops a foot away, his brow knotting. “Did you find out anything interesting?”
I shrug. “They didn’t tell me anything embarrassing. They think you’re a god.”
He raises a black brow.
“Not a god. But a really great boss. They raved about you. You showed up, refurbished the castle. Gave jobs to all the villagers in a thirty-mile radius. Revived an artisan pottery factory. Paid for new roads, fixed bridges. And apparently, you hold a fancy ball to celebrate Christmas. The Orthodox date in January. This year, it’ll be held on the ninth.”
“That’s true.”
“You're a regular benevolent lord of the castle. A modern-day ‘Good King Wenceslas.’”
He snorts. “Duke Vaclav wouldn’t lift a finger for another.”
“Oooh, he was a poser? Of course, you would know. You’re an anachronism.”
I lean against the island to look up at him. He leans in, setting his arms on either side of me.
“We need to address your continued disobedience.”
“What are you going to do about it?” I ask. “Old man,” I add.
He leans back. I suck in a breath. We’re caught in the split second when I’ve stepped over the side of the cliff and realized I’m about to fall.
He whirls me around and clamps a hand to the back of my neck, pinning my front to the butcher block. He yanks off the sash of the robe. My arms are caught in the sleeves, and the robe bunches up in the back, baring my butt.
He palms my left buttock. “I think you wanted to disobey me. I think you want me to truly punish you.” His hand claps down on my ass. “I think you like it.”
“Maybe, I do,” I pant.
“Take this like a good girl,” he purrs. “And I will give you a reward.”
I press myself into the butcher block, presenting my bottom to him.
This time he spanks me with something other than his hand. I yelp. The smaller surface area stings. I look back. There’s a bright red mark on my backside, and Gabriel’s wielding a wooden spoon.
What Chef Giampi doesn’t know won’t hurt him.
He smacks me with the spoon, marking my right buttock with a similar mark. Though it hurts, I bend back over. I want these marks. My body has been electrified since the moment I woke in this castle. I’m needy, craving sex and stimulation. Always desperate for satisfaction.
He braces me with a hand on my hip, kicks my feet further apart, and taps the implement against my pussy.
Even though it was a light tap, it’s intense, and my shout rings out, bouncing off the stove and tiled walls.
I try to close my legs, but he presses into my back, pinning my left side to the island. His right foot keeps mine from closing my legs.
“No, no,” he murmurs in a silky tone. “You can take it.”
My breath hitches, but now I’m determined. He steps away, caressing my hip and steadying me. The spoon taps my wet folds lightly. Each tap sends sparks through my core.
“Gabriel,” I breathe.
A cloud of steam billows past me. I’ve awakened his dragon. He’s as excited as I am. I love trying to make him lose control.
“Spank me,” I order. “My ass, not my pussy.”
“You are not in charge here, my lovely bride,” he says, but then he does exactly as I asked, spanking my right and left cheeks with quick, rapid smacks.
“Ouch, ooh.” I dance under the onslaught.
He stops and drops the spoon, rubbing away the sting, massaging in the heat. I moan my satisfaction and reach one hand back, seeking him. My fingers close on his shirt, and I use it to pull his body against mine. Well, I try to, anyway. At first he’s immovable, obviously needing to control the scene, as always.
But then he steps into me, pressing the bulge of his cock against my ass. “You want me to fuck you here in the kitchen, Tabitha?”
“Yes.” There’s something so naughty about it that makes it so right.
“Good.” He wraps my hair up in his fist and gently tugs my head backward. “Because I think you need to take me deeply right now. Remember who you belong to.”
On some level, I’m sure I’m offended, but none of it reaches my brain now. Instead, his words incite more flames of desire, and I let out a little whimper. He gives my ass a slap with his hand, and I turn to watch him unzip and release his erection.
“Show me what you’ve got, dragon man,” I purr,