Page 82 of Captured

“What about my career?”

He was taken aback by my question. “We’ll see. For now, you’ll be safe with Rico and my men. But you need to be good.”

I nodded, uncertain what to say.

“Good girl. I knew I could count on you. Now, I’m going to need to punish you, so remove your panties and place your hands on the piano.”

So much of me wanted to lash out but why? For the first time around him, I had the strongest feeling that he was trying to protect me. It was the oddest feeling of all. I only wished he’d shared with me the rest of the story. Something had made him switch back to his family business. That had to be a detrimental event or tragedy. I had a bad feeling I wasn’t going to like what that was.

I didn’t want to obey him. I had no desire to be punished like a bad girl all over again. However, fighting him also wasn’t an option. At least not now. I was shoved into the foggy zone, still processing everything I’d heard. Maybe he could shove the damaged part of him into a box with a thick padlock. I wasn’t certain that was possible with me. All I knew is that I hated my father more than ever. Styx’s father as well. May the man rot in his grave.

My captor and lover rubbed his knuckles across my cheek before backing away, never blinking as he started to unbuckle his belt.

The thought of him using the thick piece of leather made me shudder all over again. I was still aching from the spanking before, confused and frightened from what we’d been through. Seeing the plane shooting real bullets then watching it tumble into the sea had been almost the most horrible thing I’d witnessed in my life.

Other than finding my mother and seeing Tyler’s body in the woods. The second time there’d been so much blood, so much horror. But hearing what he’d come home to was just as terrible if not more. How much could one man endure before he went… mad?

God. I couldn’t get all the terrible things out of my mind, the swirling images making me nauseated. I hadn’t realized I’d complied with his request until I’d placed a new lace thong on the top of the piano, getting myself into position with my palms on the beautiful instrument.

He made me wait, taking his time removing the belt from the loops. I could hear every sound, although they seemed exaggerated. When he’d freed the thick strap, he cracked it against the floor and I shivered all over again.

His approach was equally slow, taking his sweet time in making me feel the sick anticipation of upcoming pain.

But there was also another strange sense of excitement as well.

When he was only inches away, he pressed his hand against the small of my back before pulling me further away from the piano and lifting my dress over my waist. After he was satisfied, he kicked my legs further apart.

“Do you now understand I will do everything in my power to protect you?”

I wasn’t certain if his question was rhetorical, but I did sense he was looking for an honest answer. “Yes.”

“Good. I’m glad. Because I’d die to keep you safe.”

It was another moment where I wasn’t certain how to feel or what to think but I was certain he was telling me the truth. I took several gasping breaths, my heart racing more than it had done before. He took his time running his fingers up and down my spine. His touch was electric, my pulse skipping. I wasn’t the kind of woman to ever think I’d be okay with some crazed man spanking me but here I was, my mind wrapping around the fact in his world things were different. There were protocols I could understand because of my father.

How many times had I seen my father taking out his anger on someone in his employ, berating them for their lack of respect? However, from what little I’d seen of the man with his employees, Styx wasn’t as caustic as my father was. There was a level of shared respect I sensed, which was like everything else about the powerful man.

Shocking as hell.

However, I had no doubt Styx could be just as brutal if necessary.

Maybe that’s why I wasn’t arguing with him or attempting to push him away, fleeing from the round of discipline.

Was there some small portion of me that had known I’d been pushing his buttons? I wasn’t certain but when he slipped his hand between my legs, I was mortified how strong the scent of my desire had become.

Every time he growled, I was pulled into some crazy kind of fantasy. Today was no exception. I was wet, my skin tingling and the moment he thrust his fingers inside, I almost erupted into a powerful orgasm.

“Oh. God.” The strangled sound I made was tempered by the fear that one of his men was listening or walking by the open door. The thought of being humiliated was both exciting and terrifying, especially since I had absolutely no control.

“My wet little baby sparrow.” He plunged a few more times before removing his fingers. The exaggerated slurping sound he made brought a sinful smile to my face.

He took his time, igniting my core even more, making the anticipation of what he had planned that much more incredible. Who would have thought I would be so aroused from the thought of being spanked?

Finally, he stopped wasting time, tapping both my ass cheeks before taking a step back. I braced myself for impact, clenching every muscle seconds before he brought the belt down across my sit spot. He’d punished me before, but this was excruciating, so much so I pushed myself all the way away from the piano, frozen in midair as my breath whooshed out of me.

“Stay in position, little sparrow.” He waited for a few seconds until I settled myself against the edge of the instrument before cracking the thick leather four times in rapid succession.

I kicked up one leg then the other, cringing inside. The anguish seemed worse than it had before, the rush of adrenaline not helping, nor the embarrassment as I felt my juices running down my legs. He wasn’t gentle nor was the spanking about foreplay of any kind. Neither was he angry, calmer than I’d experienced with him before.

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