Page 86 of Cherry Auction

She’s too strong. The ghost I was foolishly reaching so hard for is suddenly here, wrenching control away from me. If I ever even had it.

“Red,” the me that’shersays mechanically into Domhn’sear. My mouth forms the words, but it’s the ghost who’s speaking. She’s back. She’s here and she’s me.

And she’s fully in control now.

Domhnall yanks back from me, eyes pained and confused. But his hands readily release me when I climb off him, unseating me from his still hard cock. I back away from him across the stage, pulling the tail out of my backside with a disconcerted grunt. I drop it to the ground with a dullthud.

“Brooke,” Domhnall calls, concerned.

But that’s not my name. It was never my name.

Donny I have to tell you something!

But I never could, could I? She kept my mouth shut, somehow. Even though one of us was always asleep while the other was awake. I shouldn’t be awake now while she’s in control, but I am somehow.

She’s the one who obeys. She always obeys Daddy.

I take several more steps away from Domhnall even though in my head, I’m screaming—What are you doing? Go back!

Instead, I turn away from him mechanically and climb off the stage, as if it’s not me controlling my body. Because oh god, it’s not. It’s like I’m on the outside looking in, but I’m not at the controls.

Sheis.

No matter how loud I scream, no sound comes out of my throat. I don’t say a single word, not even when Domhnall calls my name again.

I just pick up the coat we discarded at the front of the stage, swing it around my shoulders, and keep walking towards the back door.

That’s Daddy’s good girl, I hear in my head, a horrifying voice that sends me shrinking to the corner of my mind.

I climb in the box and pull the lid shut tight to hide. My feet keep taking me further and further away from Domhnall towards the back door of the club and the darkness beyond.

THIRTY-FOUR

DOMHNALL

“Brooke,”I call again when she keeps walking away from me, grabbing my jeans off the stage and shoving my legs into them.

What the hell is going on? It’s like she just flipped out when I told her I loved her. She had to know, didn’t she? She’d just said it to me and hearing it out of her mouth was everything I always wanted to hear. I only realized once she was saying it. But obviously it freaked her out to hear it in return.

Still, we can fix this. We’ve already been through so much already. A safeword is meant to be just that. I’ll makeher feel safe and we can start again. We don’t have to do scenes. Dammit, I knew it was a bad idea to come here tonight.

This is just a little hiccup. This is nothing.

I jog to catch up, managing to shove my dick back in my jeans and button them right before I reach her. She continues acting like she can’t hear my voice, and I get worried. Maybe something else is going on and she’s still in subspace or something. Professor Roberts said different things might trigger her. Shit, I knew this was too soon!

I shove past some club members until I get around in front of her, planting myself in her path and grabbing her arm when she keeps trying to step around me, still not looking my way.

“Hey. Brooke!” I give her a gentle shake, trying to jog her back to herself.

She finally looks at me all right, her eyes full of scorn. “That’s not my fucking name and you know it.” Her tone is venomous. “I expect the full sum will be in my bank account now?”

I can only blink at her, so confused about what the hell is going on.

Just then, though, Quinn pushes her way up to us. Right as Brooke yanks at my grip on her. “Let go of my fucking arm.”

“What the hell’s going on?” Quinn demands, grabbing my wrist in some sort of jiu jitsu wrist hold that immediatelymakes me go weak with pain right as my fingers were loosening to let go of Brooke, anyway.

“You’re not needed,” I snap at Quinn.

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