Page 38 of Broken Surrender
“Good luck.”
A flash of emotion waved through Desmond’s eyes as I emerged, then faded into the background. He held out his hand.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
I wasn’t sure how to answer, so I nodded. He led me down a hallway to a series of rooms, each one with the door slightly ajar. A buzz came from one room, almost like a cicada next to a microphone, and in another, a man stretched across a rack, crying between each rhythmic sting of impact. A string of blades hung above a woman’s head. I held Desmond’s arm, clutching him for protection, but what could he do for me now? I was being offered. Like he had wanted. And he had put me through this.
Adrenaline built inside of me, weaving back and forth. I had to do this.
Finally, we came to a room with a blue light emanating from within. On the wall, two large golden rings hung down from chains, more like jewelry than restraints. And in the corner, the man that Desmond had been talking to earlier—the one who was new like us, Finn—was standing, watching, waiting. Even with our entry, he didn’t seem to notice us; his mind was elsewhere. Like he was trying not to engage.
Desmond circled a finger, and I turned around, letting him undress me, the fabric falling to the floor. I stayed in my elbow gloves, stockings, and heels, somehow more hot than I had been fully dressed. Desmond moved my hands, placing them inside of the rings, locking the shackles in place. My breasts hiked up, squishing into each other. He removed a small box from his pocket and removed a necklace. It was huge, with a ruby in the middle, and long diamond petals reaching out like the flames of a fire. He clasped it around my neck.
“Let’s begin,” Desmond said. He stepped back, admiring me. My body filled with heat under his gaze, knowing that this was it.Thiswas our moment, my training coming to fruition, my end of the agreement fulfilled. But when his eyes touched me all over like that, full of longing and the need to possess me, I didn’t want it to end. I wanted him to look at me like that forever.
Desmond nodded to Finn. “Here’s your invitation,” he said.
Finn came closer, but his eyes never crossed me. Between my legs, it was a constant fire. I squeezed my thighs shut. Finn’s blank gray eyes were haunting, like pieces of black ice. My arms ached above me. I leaned back against the wall, unsure of what to do. But Desmond had trained me to want this. A conditioned response. Finn skimmed the back of his knuckles down my breast, sending a shiver straight through me. My eyes went to Desmond, waiting for his response. I didn’twantto enjoy it. But I had no control over my body.
Desmond bowed his head slightly, his eyes glued to mine, as if to say,You can’t help it, puppet. And that’s your greatest flaw and strength.
I closed my eyes. Tried to act like I liked it. And I was enjoying it. Finn’s fingertips teased me, then the pointed end of a knife crossed over my flesh, digging a deep red line into my skin. I yelped, focusing my eyes on Desmond. Desmond dipped his chin, egging me on, but his fists were clenched, twitching at his side. Did he want to put me through this, or did it bother him? I wanted to make him proud, to do thisforhim, to get this blackmail situation over with so we could maybe try to negotiate ourownterms. But my shoulders were weighty, my throat tight. I wanted him to know that I was only doing this for him. I closed my eyes and imagined we were back at his house and he was manipulating me. That he wanted to tease me with the knife. His words echoed in my ear:Why is your pussy wet?
Two figures appeared in the doorway, a man in a white mask, and Zira. She grinned at me, coming forward, stroking my arm as Finn dragged the blade across my areolas, then pressed the point into the tissue, drawing one red drop of blood. I didn’t feel anything yet, but it terrified me. What would he do, exactly? When did this offering stop? I didn’t trust him with a knife, but I would have gladly laid myself out for Desmond. The man in the doorway stayed back, observing from afar. When he saw me, he waved his thin fingers. Why was he waving at me? Did I know him? My chest swelled, pressing into the blade. I hissed, taking in a sharp breath, and for the first time that evening, Finn smiled. I panicked, searching for Desmond.
Another woman, this time without a mask, wearing the same flower necklace as me, appeared, naked and barefoot. The white-masked man put his arm around her, his expression leering. My insides seized up with the sudden urge to warn her to stay away. I didn’t know who he was or what was wrong with him, but I knew he was bad.
But there were so many people here. Maybe I wasn’t used to being in a crowd like this anymore. Maybe I was paranoid.
Finn’s cock bulged against me, but his eyes stayed empty like it didn’t matter who I was. This was a function to him, a task to perform. There was arousal, but his engagement was somewhere else.
Desmond motioned Zira forward. “Please join us,” he said.
“How’d you find this one, anyway?” Zira asked.
“The perfect circumstances,” he said, a chuckle hidden in his voice, but his lip twitched, and I knew without a doubt that this bothered him. He had chosen Finn and Zira for some reason, maybe because they wouldn’t be interested. But it was battling inside of him: his desire for the membership in Marked Blooms Syndicate, and his need to keep me all to himself.
And when I thought about his explanation, ‘the perfect circumstances,’ it made sense. In some ways, it had seemed premeditated. Desmond had watched me every night on that balcony and had known exactly where to go when I murdered my husband, almost like he knew—before I did—when those circumstances would come to light. As if he had somehow helped orchestrate them, knowing I would do it.
Finn pressed the blade into my nipple and I closed my eyes, falling deeper into myself, pretending it was Desmond, but knowing that it wasn’t. In my dream state, I reached for his cock, but when I skimmed my fingertips across his pants, Finn bared his teeth, growling, his body lurching back. Desmond immediately stepped in front of Finn.
“Fuck it,” Desmond muttered. He pulled on the necklace, yanking it down, the chain creasing my neck, a pain searing inside of me. I gasped. He unclasped it, shoving it in his pocket. I crumpled inside of myself, my face red. I had screwed it up, hadn’t I? Zira gave me an apologetic smile.
But Desmond wasn’t mad. He reached behind me, massaging my ass, his finger sliding to my tight hole, instantly making me forget my shame. Then he bent down, biting my breast so hard that everything pulsed, his teeth leaving impressions in my skin. I let myself go, enjoying Desmond’s pain and pleasure, letting myself forget where we were. But when I opened my eyes, I saw the silhouette of the white-masked man and the other woman in the necklace. His eyes fell on me, and he snapped his teeth shut like a predator.
Desmond rose, then sniffed my hair, gripping it with one hand, impaling my ass with the other.
“Whose body is this?” he asked.
I melted inside. “Yours,” I said. “Only yours.”
He pressed another finger inside of me, and my body clenched up. I moaned, and Desmond twisted my nipples. Electricity surged through me, filling me with the most overwhelming pleasure. I focused on Desmond’s finger in my ass, his other free fingers manipulating my pussy, making me shiver in place. I was going to come.I was so close.And it was too much. But my orgasms weren’t mine. They were his. And I loved it and hated it and had longed for a man to control me like this for so long, to give a damn, that I couldn’t control myself anymore. Not if he kept doing that.
I screamed: “May I come, sir?”
“Come for me, Lena,” he bellowed. “Only me.”
The orgasm raked through me, pulsing with bursts. I squeezed the chains, trying to keep myself up, but Desmond didn’t stop. He wouldn’t let himself.
