Page 17 of Gideon
I made my way back to the Ataraxia and back down below deck, pulling out the rope I had played with earlier. I wound the material back into tidy hanks for storing and then stopped. If she was off to bed anyway, might as well practice a few more ties. I once again tied the gauntlet on my wrist that I had begun earlier, enjoying the feel of the rope once more.
The rope tightened perfectly around my skin as I tied it up my arm, weaving it around and around. The tension bit into my skin just a little, offering me a touch of calm in the turmoil I was feeling. I needed to get over myself, get past my temper, and handle this matter once and for all. I vowed to myself right then and there, no matter how much of her temper she came at me with, I would sit her down and have this talk with her tomorrow. Even if it killed me.
CHAPTER5
NAOMI
I felt invigorated. While I thought it odd that he owned a boat out here in the middle of the Utah mountains, I had been absolutely delighted to go out on the water. He was right. It was peaceful beyond belief, something I had never experienced, especially here in Zion. The way the boat glided through the water, and the cool calmness of the night, had set my soul at ease better than anything ever had before.
It would have been perfect if it hadn’t been for Gideon. He just had to push my buttons and be a stubborn ass. All the time. Like, it never stopped. I didn’t know what it was about him, but he just set me on edge. And then there was the matter of the sex we’d had earlier in the evening. Where had that even come from? One minute we had been arguing, nearly at each other’s throats, and the next he was just — on me.
I didn’t want to admit it, even to myself, but it was hands down the singular most erotic moment of my life. I didn’t want to like it, but I had. More than liked it. The way he touched me, the way he spoke to me, made me quiver and tremble with a desire I had not known was possible.
It was awful. And wonderful. And terrible. I had needed him in that moment more than I had ever needed anything before. Andthatwasnota part of my plan. My plan was to leave, to escape this place once and for all. Getting tangled up in the delicious web of sexual arousal that my new husband spun was the furthest thing from helpful that anything could be. But how could I not entangle myself in it? Especially when his touch felt like fire and his kisses tasted like pure sin?
It had shocked me, to say the very least, when he had pushed me against the wall, claiming me like a beast. Hewasa beast, and he had bested me in the most sensual way possible.
As I lay there in bed after our boating excursion, it was all I could think about. His hands on my body, his words pushing my arousal to a fever pitch. I felt my nipples harden at the memory, my thighs rubbing against one another as that near painful pang of arousal struck me deep within my core again.
My hands moved over my body, something I had never done before. As my fingertips grazed over my nipples through my nightdress, I gasped as the sensation felt exactly as it had with him. My hips moved of their own accord, remembering the way he had slid his fingers through my folds to find me wet and wanting. I hadn’t wanted him. Scratch that, I hadn’twantedto want him, but the desire he evoked in me was strong and as true as anything could be.
I quickly moved my hands away from my body, throwing them over my head to stop myself from further exploration. The position that put me in only reminded me of what it felt like to have him hold my hands over my head against the wall as he explored my body like he owned it. In a way, he did. And that was simply not okay with me. I was tired of being owned by the men in Zion. I was tired of being forced to be compliant and quiet, a perfect submissive housewife to abuse and control. That wasn’t me. I did not accept. I had to keep up this facade only long enough to plan my escape.
In order to do that, I needed intel. I needed information about my new husband. Something that would give me leverage, or help me get away. It would be easy enough to slip away while he was on his boat, but it wouldn’t be that simple. I wasn’t that stupid. It wouldn’t take long for them to track me down. Plus, if I left, where would I go? I had no money, no identification, absolutely nothing to help me survive in the world outside of this place. Nothing about this was simple. Not in the slightest.
Tomorrow I would get up and around early. As soon as he was out on his precious boat, I would begin my new mission. Finding something in this house that would give me leverage or give me the help I needed to get away. If tomorrow were anything like the last two days, he would be out there for hours. That would give me all the time I needed to find something. If I was lucky, I would find cash, but anything would be helpful. If he could afford that boat, he surely had money lying around here somewhere. Judging by the state of this house, he might not have a penny to his name either. There was no way to know for sure.
“Naomi?” I heard him call as he knocked softly on the door. I had two options: answer him, or pretend to be asleep. If I answered him, he would want to talk. I didn’t want to talk. I was done talking for the foreseeable future, and if tonight was anything to go by, he would probably push me to tell him things I did not want to tell him. If I kept pushing him the way I had been, I would likely be punished or worse. If he got mad enough at me, he could very well turn me over to his father. That was the absolute worst potential outcome. So, I chose to sleep. I turned over onto my side, facing the side of the bed closest to me, and feigned a deep, contented sleep.
“Naomi?” he called again softly. I heard the doorknob turn as he opened the door slowly. Dammit, I should have locked it. I inwardly cursed my stupidity, but it didn’t do me a lick of good now.
His footsteps padded into the room slowly, almost hesitantly. A moment later, I heard the door close, but the footsteps continued on into the room.
Deep, even breaths, Naomi.
I heard him moving about the room, likely readying himself for bed. I guess my nights of sleeping alone were finally at an end. Did that mean he would expect sex? Most likely. The number one aim in Zion was procreation, after all. I needed to find my cool, find my center. If that’s what he wished, I would give it to him. I needed to buy myself some time.
I held myself still, trying to be relaxed to give off the idea that I was truly asleep, as he climbed into the bed next to me. I readied myself for the inevitable invasion of his hands on my body.
But it never came.
On and on, the minutes ticked by and still not a single word or touch from him. After a long moment, his faint snoring filled the room. It wasn’t obnoxious. More of a heavy breathing rather than a full on snore. I relaxed my body, realizing that he was asleep, and that I was safe, at least for tonight.
Still, sleep evaded me. It was difficult, knowing that this conundrum of a man next to me could roll over and take me at any moment. Or he could wake me and rile up my temper once again, which could end up with me back with his father and the dreaded group of Elders I feared most.
No matter what happened, I would keep my cool from now on. I would keep myself safe. They wouldnottake me again. I would fight, bite, and even kill before I ended up back at that dreaded house they had taken me to all those years ago.
My eyes finally closed, succumbing to fretted sleep.
Hands touched me, gently caressing my curves as something decidedly hard jutted against my rear as I gently woke to the early morning light. Gideon’s hand cupped my breast, gently tweaking the stiff peak of my nipple. My core clenched in response, much to my chagrin.
His lips pressed against the back of my shoulder, his breath warm against my skin. His hips thrust forward, gyrating against my backside in a rhythm my body couldn’t help but answer. I felt that same pang of desire deep within my womb, wanting him even in my half-sleep riddled state.
His hands tugged at my nightdress, tugging it up my body until his hands touched my bare thighs. His touch felt electric. Try as I might, I couldn’t deny the pleasure my body felt at his touch. The man was unnerving, stubborn, and downright annoying at the best of times, but now, as we lay there in the hazy glow of receding sleep, his touch electrified me.
His hand found my panties, cupping my sex and rubbing just over where my pleasure center lay, swollen and wanting. I arched against his touch, pressing back against his erection as my body answered his wanton call of desire. Our hips moved together, him pressing forward; me pressing back in response to each touch.
“That’s it, love. Nice and easy,” his sleep roughened voice coaxed me into wakefulness. Wakefulness and need for his touch. I ached for it. His arms wrapped around me, one moving fully beneath my body, using his free hand to cup my breast and twist my nipple as I gasped.
