Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
No one actually cared about her.
Oh, listen to you. Stop feeling sorry for yourself.
“But I will need to come up with some other consequences for breaking the rules,” he said.
“Why? I’m not a child.”
“No, but I can tell that sometimes you’re as impulsive as one. And having to face a consequence after breaking a rule might make you think twice before you break it.”
Hmm. Maybe.
She wasn’t going to commit to anything.
“So let’s see. What could I give you as a consequence for disobeying me and putting your life in danger. It was a big one.”
“I didn’t put my life in danger!” she protested. “I just went out to confront Ryan.”
“Who could have gotten violent with you. I know you thought he was harmless, but do you still believe that?”
She shuddered at the memory of him jacking off, of the way he’d spoken to her before.
“No,” she whispered. “I no longer think that he’s harmless.”
“Then you understand that the consequence should match the rule that was broken.”
“But you’re not going to spank me?” she asked, just wanting to make sure of that.
“No. Like I said, we’d have to be in a relationship or at the club.”
What did he mean by the club?
Was it a men’s club? A sex club? A BDSM club?
Was he a Dominant? She wasn’t sure she knew any Doms. Sometimes she wondered about Sav from the things Livvy had said. But that really wasn’t the sort of thing you could just come out and ask someone, was it?
“Are you a Dominant?” she blurted out.
Or maybe you could.
His eyes widened. He was still crouched in front of her, but he suddenly stood at her words. She stared up at him in shock. Was he going to walk away? Had she gone too far?
But he just sat on the armchair across from her.
“We don’t know each other that well,” he said. “Which makes it harder for you to trust me. So I’m willing to tell you some things about myself. Yes, I’m a Dominant. But that has no bearing on this job or my ability to keep you safe.”
Oh.
Did he think that she was horrified or maybe angry or something? She wasn’t.
“I don’t care if you’re a Dom,” she told him.
“Do you know much about BDSM? About Dominants and submissives?”
“Oh, um. Not a lot, no. I like to read sexy books sometimes that have BDSM in them. And I had an old boyfriend who enjoyed tying me up during sex. I really can’t believe I just told you that. What is wrong with me?” she groaned.
She glanced down at his mouth to find him smiling.
“It’s all right. Your secrets are safe with me.”
Even though he sounded like he was joking, she got the feeling that they really were safe with him.
“Thanks,” she said in a croaky voice. “I think I should go to bed now.”
“All right, we can have a conversation about your punishment in the morning. You don’t have to go to work until late tomorrow, right?”
Oh, crap.
She didn’t want to put off this conversation.
So she sat back down. “Or we can talk now.”
“I thought you might agree with me. So, here are the consequences. For running out of the house and over to Ryan without telling me, a hundred lines saying: I will not put myself in danger and I will follow the rules.”
“A hundred? I didn’t do that much writing at school! Can’t I just type them out on my phone?”
Writing them by hand seemed so old-fashioned and kind of barbaric.
“No. By hand. That’s part of the punishment. And for not obeying me when you were outside and going immediately inside and putting on socks . . .” he trailed off.
What?
What was this insane punishment going to be?
“What?” she finally asked, cracking. “No dinner tomorrow? Give you a hundred dollars? Do all your laundry? What is it?”
“I will never take your money. Nor would I allow you to go without a meal. You don’t eat enough as it is.”
She had no idea what he was talking about. She ate plenty.
“Extra chores is a good idea. But until I know what you don’t like, it’s hard to know what to give you. For all I know, you might enjoy laundry.”
“Who the heck would enjoy laundry?” she asked him in confusion. “Nobody likes cleaning dirty underwear and socks. Especially when they’re not your own! It’s just gross.”
“All right, are there any chores you do like doing?”
“They’re called chores for a reason.”
“For the rest of the week, you’re on dishes clean up,” he informed her. “You’ll be washing and drying all the dishes.”
Not so hard. She had a dishwasher that did most of that.
“By hand.”
My God.
He wasn’t just a Dominant! He was a freaking sadist.
Do all the dishes by hand for a week?
“I am really thinking about some of my life choices right now,” she muttered.