Page 14 of Cruel Love
She poured a small amount of red wine into my glass, stepping backto let me taste it. I sipped the drink before nodding my head in approval. She filled my glass up but paused, unsure whether to pour Willow a glass. Again, I nodded.
“Dinner will be served in a few minutes, Sir,”she said after fillingWillow’s glass and leaving us alone.
“Drink, Willow,”I said when she only stared at her wine.
Obeying, her shaky hand reached out to pick up the glass. She took asmall mouthful, and as she put the glass down, her tongue came out to swipe up the droplet on her bottom lip.
More blood rushed to my cock at imagining her tongue licking up myshaft. I tried to ignore it, needing to discuss a few matters with her before I could think about pumping my cock inside her again.“Before we eat, I want to go over some rules with you.”
“Yes, Sir,”she replied, her voice meek, and still not meeting my gaze.
Her refusal to look at me was infuriating. I wanted those eyes on meat all times. Anger began vibrating in my bones at her disrespect.
“Willow,”I barked.“Rule number one. When I speak to you, you willlook at me. I don’t give a fuck if you were taught to keep your head bowed at Peartree House. You live here now, and when you are in my presence, you will look at me.”
She raised her head, eyes once again meeting mine. I’d expectedthem to be watery, or at least full of emotion, but she stared at me with emptiness in her multi-colored orbs.
“Rule two, something we’ve already covered. If I tell you to be readyor to meet me somewhere at a certain time, I expect you to be there on time. I don’t tolerate tardiness.”
She stared back at me, her expression still completely void of anyemotions. I may as well have been talking to a fucking brick wall from her lack of response which only added to the fury brewing in me, notjustbecause of the absence of any reaction, but from how painful my cock now was.
“Rule three,”I continued, wondering what it would take to get aresponse from her.“You’ll notethatI have a number of staff who work to keep my house secure, and in pristine condition, the way I like it. You will not speak to any of my staff unless I permit you. The only person I will allow you to speak to is Edith, the head of my staff, who visited you earlier, andthatwill only be to make her aware of anything you might need such as clothes or toiletries.”
Still, she gave me no response. The only way I could tell she wasn’t afucking statue was the way her chest delicately rose and fell with every breath she took.
A growl rumbled in my chest, rage taking hold.“Rule four,”I grittedout.“If I tell you to do something, I expect you to do it without delay. If I tell you right this second to get on your knees and suck my cock, you will. If I tell you to strip naked and lay on this table while my men run a train on you, you will do it without complaint. Do you understand?”
I hadn’t realized it, but it was only when Willow’s gaze flickered to myhandthatI found I’d picked up my steak knife and was clutching it so tightthatmy knuckles had turned white.But I refused to acknowledge the murderous streak coursing throughme at the thought of my men, or anyone but me touching her.
“Yes, Sir,”she replied quietly.
“Stop fucking sayingthat,”I hissed, dropping the knife. As itclattered on the table, she flinched in her chair.“I’m sure you can say something else other than‘Yes, Sir’.”
“I’m sorry. I understand your rules,”she replied timidly.
A muscle twitched in my jaw. Every part of me wanted to wrap myhand around her throat, and fuck her raw while I controlled her airway as punishment for being so damn infuriating.
I sucked in a breath, attempting to calm myself.“Rule five,”I sneered.This hadn’t been an intended rule, but the effect she was having on me was pissing me off. Every time I inhaled, her intoxicating scent seeped into every single one of my pores, pushing me to the point of losing control.“You will earn privileges. Obey my rules and please me when I demand it, and I will reward you for good behavior. Untilthen, you will stay in your bedroom. If you want new journals so you can write your stories, you will work for them.”
Her eyes widened at the mention of her journals. I’d found them afterI’d rifled through her bag earlier, and had been amazed at the amount she’d written in them. It was evident they meant something to her with how much care she’d taken to keep her handwriting exceptionally neat, and ensured the pages weren’t dog-eared.
I’d made a mental note to go back through them and read what she’dwritten when I had more time, but her reaction to me mentioning them piqued my curiosity all the more.
“If there is anything you want,”I continued.“You will behave yourselfto earn it. Have I made myself clear?”
If she replied with,‘Yes, Sir’, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back.Luckily for her, she didn’t.
“I understand your rules, Mr. Carter, and I will obey,”she answeredrobotically.
My lips curled into a sneer. I didn’t think she was intentionally baitingme to get a reaction, but it damn well felt like it. This was how she had been trained to behave, and this was what I wanted in a wife. So why was her perfect compliance pissing me off so damn much?
“One final thing,”I said, standing from my seat. Her wary eyestracked me, and her whole body tensed when I stopped behind her.
I rummaged in my pocket and pulled out the gift I intended to make herwear as a symbol of our marriage. I wasn’t sure if she’d noticedthatI was now sporting a gold band on my ring finger, but she wouldn’t be wearing a matching one.
Reaching over her head, she flinched as I placed the black, metalcollar around her throat, gathering her hair and pulling it to one side so I could fasten the back of it with the tiny padlock, for which there was only one key.
A keythatI would keep on me wherever I went.
