Page 58 of Escape Velocity

“In the cargo bay.”

“Then we should do it. Do you have something you can use as a whip?”

“No.”

“A leather strap.”

“I’d rather use my hand.”

She tipped her head to the side. “That might be all right.”

He made his voice hard. “This is punishment, and what I do is my choice. I’m not going to take directions from you. And I’m not going to ease your mind by answering any questions.”

She kept her gaze steady. “You are learning how to be stern with me.”

The last thing he wanted to learn was to be an abuser. But he knew there was no point in arguing with her.

Instead, he said, “Right. And not another word from you until I say you can speak.”

She answered with a tight nod.

“Let’s go. March yourself down to the cargo bay. Hurry up.” For emphasis, he gave her a little push in the right direction.

She started off, her head down, and he guided her toward the interior bay doors. As they walked, he considered what he might do. She wanted to be punished. Or maybe needed was a better word. But the last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. He felt caught in a trap that she’d sprung on him. But at the same time, he felt a kind of pressure building inside his own chest. He silently admitted that he had been angry with her since they’d gotten back from the space station. First, she’d told him a pack of lies. Then she could have killed Rafe if they hadn’t stopped her. She was impulsive, and that could be dangerous for her—and for anyone around her.

He didn’t want to think too much about what he was feeling, so he tried to focus on practicalities.

After they’d stepped into the cargo bay, he looked around.

She had asked him to fix her to the wall. But after seeing her in that Freedom Station storage room, the image made his stomach churn. No, it would have to be something else.

He spotted a folding table and opened it up, then laid a padded cargo mat across it.

“Permission to speak,” she said in a low voice.

“Go ahead.”

“Do you want me to lie on that?” she asked.

“No.” As he spoke, he found some of the leather straps for securing the ends of packing cords. He used hooks to attach the straps to one end of the table.

“Those won’t hold me.”

“I know. It will make it worse for you if you have to hang on to the loops by yourself. And if you let go, the punishment will be worse.”

She thought about it, then nodded.

“Try them out. I want to see you bend over and grip them,” he ordered sternly.

He had never exercised control over another person like this. He couldn’t help feeling the power of it building inside himself.

She gave him a quick glance and stood at one end of the horizontal surface before bending over and reaching for the leather.

When she had grasped the loops, he felt a little jolt of sensation that he didn’t want to examine too closely.

Hearing his voice thicken he said, “Now stand up again and face me.”

When she had complied, he said, “Take off your clothes. Do it slowly.”

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