“Since I’ve been here,” I interject.
She nods. “Yes, since you’ve been here.”
I get up from my seat and pace back and forth in front of the mirror with my hands behind my back. I can feel Katja’s eyes on me, but I don’t look at her. Not yet.
“That’s a lot of money,” I say quietly.
“Yes.” Her voice is soft, not pleading or whining, but very soft.
“If I give you this money…” I stop pacing and look at her directly. “I’ll expect our contract negotiations to come to an end. I’ll expect you to meet my terms.”
There’s a long pause, but then she says, “Yes.”
I walk over and stand in front of her while she sits and waits. “And there will be consequences.”
She looks up at me, unmoving for a few long, contemplating moments.
She eventually nods.
“Say it,” I demand.
“Yes. I’ll accept the consequences.”
Chapter Fourteen
KATJA
My heart is pounding so hard I’m sure Dex must be able to hear it in the otherwise eerily quiet room. I train my gaze on his expensive shoes to avoid looking into his eyes. I can’t bear to see the victory I know I’ll find there now that I’ve agreed to his dreaded consequences. The skin across my ass tingles in some kind of sick anticipation.
“Look at me,” he growls. It’s as if he’s heard my thoughts.
It takes all my effort to keep from bolting from the room, but I refuse to give him the satisfaction. He’s stepped between my chair and the heavy desk at his back. My peripheral view catches him leaning against the wood. I force myself to raise my gaze, trying not to get hung up on his bare, muscular forearms folded across his chest directly in front of me.
I focus on his expensive watch until he barks, “Eyes.”
Like a damn puppy dog, I obey his command. I’ve known the man in front of me my entire life so it rattles me when I can’t get a read on his hard glare.
Only when I start to feel a bit light-headed do I realize I’ve been holding my breath, waiting for him to command me to assume the position for my consequences. I glance away again, releasing my pent-up air in a whoosh. I’m about to snap at him to just get on with it so I can get my belting behind me when he gives his next order.
“On your knees.”
My eyes fly back to his and this time the victory I’ve been expecting is glaring back at me.
“But… I thought…” I stutter.
I hate letting him see me flustered. I’d prepared myself for another belting before even stepping into the elevator today. Now he’s changing the script on me.
“Oh, you thought I’d give you another lame belting? Is that it?” he taunts.
That was exactly what I’d thought, but I’m not going to tell him that.
He fills the silence with words that terrify me. “That belting was a mere appetizer, Katja. You’ll find that I’m a firm believer in escalating consequences until they start to have the desired effect.”
My mind scrambles to read between the lines. The belting the week before had been humiliating and painful. What could be worse?
Several long seconds tick by before Dex pushes up from the desk, forcing me to crane my neck to keep looking him in the eyes. The dominance glaring back reminds me of how much trouble I’m really in.
“I’m a busy man, Katja. I don’t have all day. If you want my help, you’ll fall to your knees in the next three seconds. If you don’t, I suggest you head back up to your penthouse and start packing. I’m sure you have personal items you won’t want confiscated when The Whitney moves into bankruptcy.”