“She said that? The love?”
Daniel nodded. “Yeah.”
“Maybe we should talk to her face-to-face.”
Daniel shook his head. “She was very clear about needing time away from us. I don’t want to be a bully. And she’s right in some respects, you know. If we’re honest. How can she ever share the kind of love we have for each other?”
“You know, I’ve been thinking about that a lot, Daniel. About love. What it is, what it means. I don’t think love is just one thing. I think there are grades, degrees, nuances. I think we love different people in different ways. Her coming into our lives has really made me realize love comes in lots of forms.
“I can honestly say I do love Alex. Maybe not in the same way I love you but it’s real nevertheless. I miss her. She could drive you nuts but she was always fun and full of life. I feel her absence. Does that equal love? I don’t know. But I’d like to find out.”
Daniel stared at Liam. He’d never said so directly just exactly what Daniel felt. Daniel had hesitated to articulate it so bluntly, still mindful of hurting Liam’s feelings and making him think Daniel was putting his feelings for Alex above or between them.
“You really mean that?”
Liam nodded solemnly. “I do.”
Daniel smiled but then sighed. “Too bad we didn’t figure this out before she left us, huh? I guess it’s a case of live and learn.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Liam’s smile was mysterious. “I wouldn’t write her off just yet.”
~*~
Alex opened her mouth and Anthony slid a small piece of meat into it. She ate every bite Anthony offered her, aware the food could suddenly be withdrawn. Apparently, she’d done well enough to earn the right to food and drink, but she hadn’t earned the right to sit on a chair. She was kneeling on the kitchen floor, naked with her hands tied loosely behind her back. He had placed a stiff black leather dog collar around her neck with silver spikes jutting every few inches along its length. He attached a chain leash to it, which he jerked every now and then, nearly pulling her over.
The abject terror she’d felt while bound in the dark attic had abated. She felt more numb than anything. The whole thing was so surreal. This was the stuff of fiction. Real people didn’t keep other people like this against their will, did they?
The truly scary thing was that Anthony really seemed to believe what he was doing was okay. He had no problem keeping her against her will.
He fed her another bite and wiped her mouth with a linen napkin. While holding a glass of red wine to her lips, some spilled and splashed onto her breast. Anthony wiped it as if she were a child. He held the glass again to her lips.
She managed a sip. “Thank you, Sir.”
“You’re welcome, Alexandra.” Idly he stroked her breast. “I am looking forward to the day when you’ve earned my cock. Today is not that day. However, I am curious to see your level of orgasm control. I think we’ll work on that this evening.”
He led her by the leash to his bedroom and pushed her down onto the bed. Using her silver cuffs, he tethered her arms to the headboard. Thrusting a pillow beneath her hips, he then tied rope around her ankles and jerked them apart, securing them to the bars at the foot of the bed.
Alex’s heart was pounding again. She hated herself for being so docile, but she was too afraid to fight him. He was much stronger than she and probably outweighed her by a good hundred pounds. The specter of the dark attic still loomed large in her mind.
No, it was better to bide her time and fool him into thinking she was compliant. He’d made it clear he wasn’t going to let her go. She would have to seize whatever opportunity presented itself to get the hell out of there.
He was fiddling in the chest that stood against the wall. She lifted her head, glancing around the room. She saw her purse on the small table by the chair but not her clothing. The idea of running out of the house naked was not an appealing one but she’d do it if she had to. At least she knew where her car keys were.
He returned with a large penis-shaped dildo and an ominous-looking shiny metal vibrator. “Open your mouth. Suck this cock while I make you come. You will come on command and not a second before, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Sir.”
She opened her mouth and Anthony slid the penis in, shoving it back until she began to gag. He pulled it slightly forward, and said, “Keep it in, no matter what.”