Page 78 of Need

“Eyes on me.” Her gaze returned to the front, and she gave me her full attention. “Thank you. Now explain to me why you’re at five.”

“All the people,” she whispered.

“What about them?”

“They’re so close. I can’t keep track of them. They keep moving.”

“Yes, they do. In places like this, no one ever stays in one place for too long. And if you’re never comfortable coming to a place like this by yourself that’s okay. It can be overwhelming. But today, right now, I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“I know. I just... I get scared.”

I hated seeing her like this. All I wanted was to make it better for her. “Is there anything I can do that will make you less scared?”

She didn’t answer right away, taking her time to think about the question. This was one of the things that made her a lovely submissive partner. Too often, a submissive was quick to answer with whatever they thought their Dom wanted to hear. Once Brianna understood that I wanted real answers from her when I asked, she took the time to think the answer through instead of spouting out nonsense that meant nothing at the end of the day.

I saw something change in her face, and before I knew what hit me, she was hugging me. She wrapped her arms around my waist, and her face nestled in against my chest. Before I could ask her anything, however, she started to talk. “When I was... was with... Ian, sometimes... sometimes, he’d attach a chain to my collar. I didn’t like it,” she said, shaking her head so hard it caused her entire body to twist in my arms. “It meant that I couldn’t get away from him, not even for a minute. And if I tried, he’d just pull the chain.” She fell silent.

I was sure I understood what she wanted and why after that explanation, and to be honest, the thought of having her on a leash was very appealing. However, I needed to be sure. This would be a bigger step into Dominance and submission play, one I needed to make sure she was ready to embark upon. The last thing I wanted was for it to trigger another one of her flashbacks. I rested my hands on either side of her cheeks, forcing her to look at me.

“You want me to put you on a leash? That would make you feel more comfortable?”

She pressed her lips tightly together and nodded. “I... I think so?”

“You don’t sound sure.”

“I didn’t like it... before, because it meant he had even more control over what I was doing and where I was. It meant he had better access to hurt me.” Her words were getting softer and more distant the longer she spoke. “I feel safe with you.”

A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. She was amazing. Pressing a quick kiss to her lips, I took her hand and laced our fingers. “Stay close,” I said, as I continued walking toward the food court.

Logan and Lily were standing by a large column near the entrance when we arrived. I knew the minute Lily spotted us by the smile on her face. Lily’s reaction brought Logan’s attention to us.

“Now who’s the late one?” he teased.

Before I could respond, Brianna’s fingers began digging into my hand. When I looked down at her, all the color had drained from her face and she was staring in pure terror across the room. There was a man staring back at her with a look that told me he had more knowledge of her than he should.

“Who is that?” Logan asked. There was no way he could have missed the change in our demeanors.

“Brianna?” I asked, not taking my eyes off the man in question.

He took a step in our direction, and I felt Brianna tense. I’d only seen her react this way once before, and that was with Daren. It was all I needed to know. This man had played with her, at the very least. At most, he was one of Ian’s friends who’d abused her. Either way, this needed to be dealt with.

I forced her to look at me. “You will stay right here with Lily and Logan, do you hear me?” My voice was firm and commanding. She was to do as I said. There would be no deviation. She just stared back at me, not answering. I glanced up. The man had stopped walking, but was still watching us. “Answer me,” I demanded.

“Y... yes.”

Taking her hand, I placed it in Lily’s. I knew Brianna did much better with physical contact—preferably mine—but I needed to deal with the situation at hand, and there was no way she was coming with me.

The man’s face began to change as I neared. It had been full of shock, then curiosity, and then maybe even a little bit of hopefulness. Now a frown pulled at his mouth and his eyes became wary. I stopped a few feet away and glared at him. He took a step back, but I matched him.

“Look, I don’t want any trouble,” he said.

“You should have thought about that before you put your hands on what is mine.”

The man swallowed again, and took another step back. “I didn’t—”

“Do not lie to me.”

“Okay, okay. I... had a little fun with her. It was months ago. I haven’t seen her since.”

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