Mastered by Malone (Haven, Texas 6)

“You eaten today?” he asked.

She looked at him in surprise “Sorry?”

“You’ve been in this room most of the day, haven’t you? You eaten?”

“Um, Jaret dropped off a tray at breakfast.”

His gaze narrowed. “You haven’t eaten since breakfast?”

She shook her head.

“Where’s the tray?”

“Over there.” She pointed to the tray on the dresser across the room.

He looked down at the half-eaten sandwich and torn orange peel. “What the hell did he make you?”

“A sandwich and an orange. Oh, and some coffee, but I poured that out. It was horrid.”

Alec muttered under his breath then lifted her off his lap and sat her on the bed. He swung his legs over the side, inspecting the food. “What kind of sandwich is this?”

“Um, chocolate.”

“Chocolate? He made you a sandwich with chocolate in the middle?” He turned to gape at her.

“Chocolate sprinkles.” Why it was important to point that out, she had no idea.

He just stared at her.

“It’s my favorite.”

“Your favorite.” He shook his head and ran his hand over his face. “First rule.”

She sat up straight, preparing herself. “Yes?”

“Actually, second rule. First rule, when you talk to me, you address me as Sir.”

“All the time?”

“When we’re playing or when I’m training you, yes. Which means right now.”

“Oh, right, yes, Sir.” She kind of liked the sound of that. She’d never thought she would, but it felt right.

“Good girl.”

Oh, he couldn’t know what those two words did to her. That they sent sparks of heat flowing through her blood. She felt the urge to do more, to hear those words of praise come from him again.

“Second rule has to do with your eating habits.”

She frowned. That wasn’t something she’d been expecting. What did what she ate have to do with him teaching her to be a sub?

“I don’t understand, Sir. What has what I eat got to do with you training me?”

He stared at her for a moment, studied her. “If you’d come to the club, looking to be trained, Saxon would have found someone to take you on. Someone to guide and teach you. He would never choose me to be that someone, because I don’t take on inexperienced subs. But none of those subs have ever been here, to the ranch. They’ve ever met my brothers. Beyond negotiation, play, and aftercare, I don’t deal with them. Don’t really talk to them. I don’t know about their lives, their friends, what they do. Not beyond what’s in their file. I don’t get involved in their lives; they don’t get involved in mine.”

“Never?”

“Never. We could restrict this just to play. I could teach you how to greet me. I could bind you and spank you, tie you up in rope, I could introduce you to my collection of paddles, I could stretch your ass with plugs, dress you up like a kitten and teach y